A Driver’s Greatest Defense

As the wheels of time continue to turn faster and faster, so too do the wheels of an average citizen’s daily used vehicle. Roads get longer and wider, and less and less space is left behind for those who get around on foot or bicycle. Even the drivers and passengers of these machines that now dominate most of the US landscape are not safe from other drivers if another happens to be careless or unlucky. It is now and has always been, since the automotive industry began, extremely important for a functioning society to have well educated drivers out on the streets controlling these cars, as often the most dangerous threat to a driver or their passengers is another driver.

With how inescapable cars are in modern transportation, it follows that most people in their life have been in at least one car crash if not several. While I am lucky enough to not have a family member who has lost their life to a car accident, I myself have been in at least 2 of my own. I again count myself lucky then, to have not been the driver for either of these accidents, one was when i was very young with my grandmother in a parking lot, and the other was with my mother in heavy traffic. Admittedly, these 2 accidents alone have very little sway on how I drive today, but something I can’t ignore is the more severe accident my sister was involved in just half a year ago. My sister, who was driving around a friend at the time, was out on the highway driving 60 miles per hour, got distracted for just a moment and hit the highway divider. Her car took several flips as she landed on the other side of the highway. I am lucky that my sister walked away from that accident relatively unharmed, with her friend only sustaining a broken nose. But in my mind it shows me that most people are at least somewhat connected to at least 1 severe car accident in their lifetime.

So if we are all subject to this hostile day to day routine, where most people’s work requires at least a 20 minute commute back and forth every day (plus any time required to pick up groceries or fill up on gas or whatnot) what can we do to help mitigate that danger?

To start with, a good way to reduce driver deaths could simply be to reduce the amount of drivers on the road in the first place. Putting more money into public transport would drastically reduce the amount of unsafe drivers on crowded roads, it would discourage tired or drunken drivers from getting behind the wheel if buses and trains regularly run on time in more locations. Even then, there are still a good amount of drivers on the road, not everyone has the kind of schedule to be able to take a bus or train. Making road-safety-courses an option for potential school credit may also entice students, who are in a more developmental stage of their driving education, to learn important rules of the road early on. While I was learning to drive myself, I took a 3 hour road safety course that met every wednesday evening after school. The things I learned in that course still help me stay safe almost 3 years later, rules about road signs, about the proper ways to grip the wheel and even lessons as simple as how one needs to be ready to break in cases of stale green lights. While I took this course for insurance purposes, and admittedly wasn’t too happy about it at the time, having something like this available to 16 -18 year old teens for some kind of educational credit may massively improve driver safety in that specific school area. Unfortunately, these 2 suggestions are much bigger than most individual drivers can have a say on, so what more specific steps can we take to help our peers stay safe on the road?
I feel the first, and most important step to keep in mind always is to lead by example. Following this step is as simple as being safe and responsible while driving around a friend or a family member. This means staying at or under the speed limit, making complete stops at red lights and stop signs, staying cautious of other drivers even when you have the right of way, and of course making sure not to check your phone while driving. Something to keep in mind for this kind of behavior is it does not have to end when you yourself are not behind the wheel. While it’s important not to constantly micromanage someone else’s driving, if you ever find yourself riding with someone who displays unsafe driving behavior, speak up! Not only is it not safe for any individual inside of the vehicle but also for others on the road. This kind of activity could involve checking the drivers phone for them and navigation if necessary, speaking up if the car starts to creep way over the speed limit and maybe just giving road safety tips if the driver seems to be unsure of something like right-of-way.

While this all may seem simple and overall inconsequential to the safety of most drivers on the road, it is important to keep in mind that a little still goes a long way. Making sure that just one friend or family member learns even a single small tip about how to keep themself and others safe on the road could save someone’s life some day. Small acts of learning build up over time, and with enough experience they can create a driver who is smarter, safer and more confident than they were when they took their first place behind the wheel. Those learned drivers can then go on to share their own experience with those they know. All of this in service of keeping strong every driver’s greatest defense on the road: themself.