Navigating the Learning Curve

On July 20^th I was in a car crash. When I stepped out of the steaming car and reflected on what happened, I thought I had done everything right. I had not been checking my phone. I had been moving with traffic. I watched intently as an eighteen-wheeler switched lanes and as the driver in front of me broke suddenly. I noticed that though the car before me had come to a complete stop, I had not despite slamming the brakes all the way to the floor. I looked to the shoulder that blocked my right, the car that blocked my left and settled into my fate by bracing for impact.

In the aftermath of the wreck the police began their questioning to figure out what happened. They asked me how far I though I had been behind the car I hit, to which I replied about 3 car lengths. To my surprise I was issued a ticket for driving too close. I know now that the correct distance to be driving behind a vehicle in a construction zone is about 6-7 car lengths, but before this accident I had no Idea this was the case. If I had known I was driving too close, I believe I would have had the time I needed to stop. But I did not know, and it took an accident to teach me.

Since the accident I have been hyper aware of the way my friends and family drive. It is shocking how many small driving errors they make on a regular basis, from checking their phones to switching lanes when turning at an intersection, and those are only the ones that I am aware of. I am sure that there are so many more that I just do not know about because I was never learned what they were.

32 out of the 50 states require some form of drivers ed to earn a driver’s license. Even when drivers ed is required, only about 30 hours are needed to complete the course. That is a fraction of the amount of time most people spend learning other subjects like math. While both are useful skills, more often then not, being unable to find the derivative of something does not usually result in potential death the same way a traffic error does. In order to reduce the number of driving deaths, drivers ed needs to be prioritized and taught in schools. School taught drivers ed would give people the opportunity to learn all the intricacies of operating a motor vehicle in a controlled environment instead of learning them the hard way: in an accident that could be fatal.

I wish my drivers ed had been more extensive. Since my accident, I’ve taken it upon myself to learn more about driving safety. Until drivers ed is more thorough, the only way to keep others safe is by being knowledgeable myself, passing that knowledge on to my friends and family, and hoping they do the same.