Make Our Roads a Safer Place

In the United States, thousands of people die each year in motor vehicle accidents. Driver education strives to reduce this number by making sure drivers are properly informed about safe driving techniques. Each additional educated driver we have on our roads helps increase the likelihood of a decreased number of motor vehicle-related deaths. Drivers of all ages have heard the constant concern from our loved ones about us not being safe on the road. Interestingly enough, it is not always because they do not trust our driving but that of other drivers we share the road with. On that note, it is always easy to think of personal consequences of unsafe driving when in most cases a driver’s decisions are more likely to cause harm to others around them.

Common steps that every driver can take to reduce motor vehicle-related deaths may include not drinking and driving or not texting while driving. Additionally, making sure that there are no items, pets, or even passengers that could distract you from the road long enough to cause an accident can help keep everyone safe. According to the National Conference of State Legislations (NCSL), about 28 states have introduced hands-free driving laws. [1] These hands-free laws attempt to reduce the number of distracted drivers on the roads who could potentially harm others because of reckless behavior. Even acts as simple as using your turn signal can prevent an accident because it allows you to communicate your actions to drivers around you. Personal safety measures are also steps that can be taken to reduce deaths related to driving; for example, wearing your seatbelt, making sure all items being carried are secure, wearing sunglasses or using the sunshade to avoid being distracted by the sun, and not being on the road during dangerous weather conditions.

An additional step that can be taken to reduce the number of deaths related to driving is starting driver education as early as possible. When I was in high school, driver’s education was not part of our curriculum; but with more and more young drivers starting their journey with a vehicle, I believe that Driver’s Education should be reintroduced in our schools. By starting driver’s education early on, it ensures a greater number of safe drivers entering our highways. If all drivers have the necessary safety information provided by driver education, we can hope to see the number of deaths as a result of driving to decrease. Driver’s Education may not have been a part of my high school’s curriculum, but my parents decided to put me through Haman’s Driving School classes. I got to participate in a formal classroom portion of the course, with multiple sessions on safe driving tips as well as preventative lessons. We were shown videos of devastating motor vehicle accidents caused by reckless acts including driving under the influence and texting while driving. These videos showed students how one mistake cannot only change your life, but the lives of others as well. Additionally, we were tested on valuable driving information to ensure that we learned the material. Outside of the classroom, we were required to complete a certain number of driving lessons with a company instructor. This allowed students to have legitimate driving experience in a somewhat-controlled environment. The company provided vehicles for students to use that were modified with an additional brake pedal on the passenger’s side so that the instructor could make sure the student’s speed was controlled.

In my senior year of high school, I was in a car accident. Luckily, I was not hurt too bad and I was the only person in the car. I was driving on an unfamiliar backroad on a rainy day, and lost control of the car after going around a curve. I spun out, went into a ditch and popped back out, then spun a few more times and stopped before the car could go down a hill on the opposite side of the road. The experience was incredibly terrifying: time seemed to be going in slow motion—I could see the bag in my passenger seat floating in the air, CDs were gradually coming out of their holder on the passenger sunshade. Thankfully, I managed to not hit any other cars or destroy any property, but the accident was so bad that my car was completely totaled. The insurance adjuster who contacted me about my accident told me that I should consider myself lucky, because he had never seen an accident like this where the vehicle was not flipped. I would like to think that my driver education prepared me enough to control my vehicle that well during my accident, but luck may have been a factor.

One of the biggest steps we can all take to make sure we have safe drivers on the road is actively holding each other accountable. If you are the passenger in a car with a distracted driver, tell them to put down their phone or keep their eyes on the road. If you are that distracted driver, let your passengers hold you accountable for your mistakes. As a driver, once you are behind the wheel you are responsible for the lives of the people you are driving and for any mistakes you make on your way to your destination. Just because “everyone texts and drives” does not mean it is okay.

Source:

[1] “What States Are Hands-Free?: Texting behind the Wheel.” Morris Bart, LLC, 23 Aug. 2021, https://www.morrisbart.com/faqs/what-states-are-hands-free/.