Normalising and isolating dangerous driving

When I first drove a car, I felt an intoxicating rush of adrenaline, trepidation, and power. Perhaps it is unwise to admit to such powerful feelings when writing about driver safety but the first step to safer driving is to acknowledge how we experience driving. To be in the driver’s seat is to be free. It is also dangerous. With the liberty and power of the driver’s seat comes responsibility. It is incredible something which has become so normal in our lives has the capacity to shift suddenly from fun and efficiency to fear and destruction.

One of my friends works for a charity which helps people who have committed driving offences to effect behavioural change and reduce future risk. The charity provides education on behaviour which directly increases the risk of accidents, such as drink-driving, but my friend’s role is more holistic. She examines external factors (e.g. financial and family stresses) that may indirectly influence people to drive less cautiously. In my view, this approach should be more widely used alongside driving education because we do not leave our lives behind when we drive.

My friend and I live in a small tourist town in Shropshire, UK. Many of the worst accidents do not occur on the twisting, bumpy country roads, but on the bigger A-roads leading to other towns. Accidents occur on roads which the drivers are often familiar with, and we both know people who have been involved in fatal accidents on their regular drives. From December 2018 to December 2019, there were 13 collisions with 18 fatalities, 161 collisions with 190 serious casualties in Shropshire. Less than half of these involved drink or drugs; the maxim ‘Accidents happen’ is true. However, to say this, while it does encourage defensive driving, is to normalise driving accidents, and it is a small step from normalising driving accidents to normalising irresponsible driving.

Drivers ed is essential for reducing the number of casualties on the road because it does not merely impress upon drivers the dangers of the road but actively trains them to reduce risk. Driver support, of the sort my friend supplies, is also important for preventing repeat offences. It is important for everyone to acknowledge the twofold risks of the road; accidents do happen and so driving is not just about making good decisions but having good reactions to other pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers. At the same time, accidents shouldn’t happen and we should not tolerate irresponsible driving in ourselves or others. I have been in cars with dangerous drivers. It is easier for a friend to forgive me for insisting on speed limits and seat belts than it would be for me to forgive myself if my failure to speak up turned out to be a failure to prevent a crash. The driver’s seat is not just part of a car, it is a responsibility which demands our full respect, whether we are sat in it ourselves or not.