No Text Is Worth a Death

Driver
education is essential for informing individuals of how to safely
operate a vehicle, understand road signs and navigate traffic
patterns. If any of those aspects of driving are neglected, there is
increased risk of death. Safely operating a vehicle includes correct
positioning of hands on the steering wheel, proper use of gas and
brake pedals, shifting and how to perform dashboard operations.
Understanding road signs is crucial because they are the universal
signs that all drivers must abide to in order to safely travel. For
example, a driver must know the purpose of a yield sign. Failure to
understand the meaning of this sign increases the likelihood of an
accident. Driving on the highway can be challenging for new drivers.
There is etiquette that must be adhered to for your own safety and
the safety of those around you. Using turn signals, mirrors, and
traveling in the corresponding lanes are all important for highway
driving.

In
order to reduce the number of deaths related to driving, more people
simply need to be informed. Footage of wrecks due to texting and
intoxicated driving are extremely powerful tools to help people to
understand the dangers of those reckless and illegal activities.
Sharing factual information and footage helps to put dangers into
perspective for those who choose to be careless. Using commercials,
ads on social media and sharing informational brochures in schools
would all be powerful tools. Sharing this information with new
drivers is especially important which is why drivers ed in
schools is so important because many students obtain their driver’s
licences in high school.

Fortunately,
I have never been in a car accident, but have heard many stories of
acquaintances driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Teenagers especially, believe they are invincible and can outsmart
their intoxication and still travel safely on the road. This is far
from the truth, as in the past few years there have been deadly
crashes on local highways as a result of driving while intoxicated.
It is even more devastating when innocent lives are lost because of
others who are irresponsible.

To help myself and others to
become safer drivers, I always remind myself that “no text is worth
a death”. When I hear my phone buzz while driving it is often
tempting not to look, but I remind myself of how it only takes a
split second of distraction to end up dead. Additionally, when I see
my friends or family use their phone while driving I make a point to
say something. For example, when I see my mom on Facebook while
driving I ask her “what post is so important that you would give
your life for?” She often gets irritated, but proceeds to put her
phone away once I point it out. I believe a major key to preventing
deaths due to irresponsible driving is creating awareness in not only
yourself, but others as well.