In the Drivers seat

With freedom comes responsibility! Many American’s begin driving around the age of 16 – 18 years of age, which is very young to take on such a responsibility. Driving consists of knowing the rules of the road, being aware, and most importantly being safe! An average of 40,000 people die in the U.S. from car accidents (ASRIT.Org, 2021). The number of deaths in the United States alone are as much as the number of deaths in wars! A great way to reduce this large number of deaths is by educating our drivers about road safety. Drivers’ education is often associated with teenagers or new drivers, but this knowledge is essential and should be taught to everyone who wants to obtain a drivers license. Especially in America where we have the tools and resources to increase our knowledge and safety, we should each take this like we would any other education. Studies show that those who have taken drivers education classes have lower chances for getting into a car accident. When I first began driving, I was very insecure and nervous every time I got behind the wheel, I was fortunate to be able to afford to take a driver’s class both in class and behind the wheel. Once I graduated the program not only was I confident in my ability to drive but I was also confident that I would be able to avoid a car accident, I also knew how important it was to be 100% focused on the road.

I personally have been in a few car accidents all which happened by being ran into from the driver behind me. The first person who crashed into me blamed the pizza that they were eating, should they have taken or paid attention to drivers ed classes they would know that they need both hands on the steering wheel at all times and their full attention on the road and what’s in front of them. Instead, they were distracted by food and did not notice me in front and crashed into me, luckily it was only a fender bender but it could have been much worse if they were going faster. Unfortunately, I was in another accident that was also caused by the driver behind me not paying attention and running into me, only this time is was much worse. I was at a complete stop in traffic on the freeway, the driver behind was distracted texting coming 60 mph straight into my car causing me to launch and crash into the car in front of me that was many feet ahead. The scariest part was that I was full term pregnant, and the seatbelt and the jolt hurt my baby bump. I stopped feeling my baby, had contractions, and was rushed to make sure the baby was okay. I was very lucky that my baby was ok, my car totaled but our lives were more important.

I believe that we need to ensure that everyone is educated to drive and operate a vehicle in the best circumstances. We live in a technological world, but it is no excuse to use it while on the road. I believe that we should use technology to advance our education for road safety. I also believe there should be a car system that connects to the driver’s mobile device to lock it from being used while the gas pedal is being pushed on.

After much research and personal experience on road safety, I will continue to wear my seatbelt, not touch my mobile device, and always provide my full attention to the road when driving. I also believe that we can have a positive influence on road safety even when we’re not driving, by encouraging the driver to abide by safety rules as well. I am certain we have all been in a car with a friend or family member that is driving and decides to pick up their phone and text or play music from their phone. Just those few seconds of looking down to read a text or play a song could cause the driver to lose focus and crash or worse kill someone on the road. It is not worth the text; nothing is worth taking our eyes off the road. Let’s be educated, lets encourage one another to follow road safety rules, let’s all work together to reduce the number of deaths on the road by accidents that can easily be avoided.