Alert Today – Alive Tomorrow

One glance, one text, one small distraction could be the decision between life, trauma, or death. Too many adults and teens today pass away because of unsafe driving, and the rise of numbers needs to falter. Actions and strong implementation of driver education need to be reinforced for safer roads with safer drivers.

Driver education is a key tool in reducing the number of casualties from driving. The knowledge given to learners helps reduce the possibility of a ticket or fatal injury from an accident. It’s extremely beneficial to learn about possible driving tactics to use when in a situation, and how to react in a sudden turn of events. Driver education is and needs to be adapted by all drivers for a safer environment that will reduce vehicle deaths. It also provides insight into a what a workable and reliable car should be like, and safer cars leads to less accidents as well.

To break down the how in preventing driving-related casualties, there are different steps and actions involved. Personally, one of the most important ones is to check your phone and start any music before getting on the road and driving. To add on, the driver must also learn to adapt to pulling over to check any more immediate notifications or wait until after the drive. A built-in car GPS is also very reliable when the driver needs directions to their destination and they are alone or don’t have anyone else to direct them. If there is no GPS installed into the car, then buying a phone holder that attaches to the interior removes the complete glances away from the road and longer time spent on it. It’s also very important to go through a quick vehicle mental note update before going on a drive so that there are no car concerns. If there are, then the driver should plan when to fix the problem and what current actions they can take to make their trip and others as safe as possible.

One other important action we should take to reduce driving related deaths is participating in defensive driving. My mom has spent years teaching defensive driving as a part of her job tasks, and she has passed her own mentoring onto me and when I learned behind the wheel. Defensive driving prepares you for many unexpected situations and teaches you more about how to use your car safely that will cause less damage to others. Leading from this, it’s crucial to not be intoxicated while driving and learn what to do when near other drunk or road rage drivers. Many people, passengers included, die from drunk driving and this can cause a series of legal and personal complications.

Regarding car accidents, I have only spun out once onto a patch of grass because of an icy road during the winter, which was still a very scary but telling experience. This past spring my aunt told me of the time she got into an accident with her uncle and the severity of the accident. A lady, distracted on her phone, rear ended their car at almost 70 miles per hour, and my aunt’s old car flipped over numerous times before stopping. Luckily both my uncle and aunt were okay with non-critical injuries, however my aunt talked of how she has had nightmares about it ever since and the accident was over 8 years ago. The cops who were already present during the scene told them as well that it was the worst accident they’ve ever seen and they expected to find dead bodies in the car. The trauma I learned from this and also amount of physical therapy just because one driver checked her phone for a couple seconds was truly heartbreaking and engaging to me. This story, as well as others I have heard from my family, is why I find it even more important to drive safer and reduce the number of fatalities related with driving.

To be a safer driver personally, I have come to learn crucial steps and actions. Blind spots are another reason for car accidents, and I have learned to not take any lane change for granted and to continue to keep checking blind spots because of the good possibility of present cars. I also will take the steps of no phone usage until before or after the drive continuously so I keep other drivers safe around me and also do not harm myself in the process.

The biggest actions I have learned as a driver of about 2 years is to always be aware of my surroundings and safe driving in the winter. My uncle, right before him and my aunts crash, turned the steering wheel to the side so to not hit the car in front of them with the force of the other car that crashed into them. Because he was aware of his surroundings to his best knowledge with the little time given, the car in front of them was left without a scratch and the other driver and passenger were safe. I want to apply this big action to my own driving to be safer and inform others of certain things in their surroundings that they don’t notice while driving but could have a possible big effect. Since my own car accident, starting last winter I have taken extra caution with my turns, speed, and when to break while on slippery or snow-covered roads. I will definitely pass down my own lessons and what I learned to my younger sister, friends and other people wanting to be safer on the road.

Throughout this journey of steps to become a safe driver with driver education and defensive driving, preventing less driving-related deaths, and personal experiences, the biggest takeaway I want to have out of this essay is that there is no second chance at life, so why waste the future when you can easily take everyday steps towards safer driving for everyone?