Dangerous Drives

Several decades ago, cars no longer existed as a rarity; “everybody” owned a car. At this time, however, chaos ensued. With a scarcity of traffic laws, lights, and signs, crashes occurred left and right for a time. Yet overall, the United States has mostly seen percent increases in vehicular deaths per capita. We need reform to make this common American activity less dangerous again. A mixture of laws and regulations, and drivers changing their habits, will improve this nation’s road safety.

For laws and regulations, drivers’ education must improve. In my state, Georgia, the Teenage and Adult Driver Responsibility Act restricts young drivers and drivers-in-training; we commonly know it as “Joshua’s Law”, named after Joshua Brown, a 17-year-old driver who died in 2003 due to a hydroplaning accident at night. The law requires 16 and 17-year-olds to take 30 hours of drivers’ education and 40 hours of supervised behind-the-wheel training—with an additional 6 hours of night driving in some situations—to obtain their license. Even after obtaining this license, people must wait until age 18 to procure a license that doesn’t limit who can ride in the car with them. That said, the law, originally implemented in 2007, only prevented new drivers from easily driving; people who already obtained their license, including those approaching the age of retirement, did not need to take any more driver’s education. Starting with young people can trigger an impact over time, but without changes for the rest of the driving population, most of the driving population, changes will not occur fast enough. If driver’s education doesn’t change for the whole population, pain and death will stain the families of this nation thanks to the chaos of the road.

The law cannot realistically control our every decision, however. As drivers, we must change our own behaviors. Yes, companies have manufactured safer cars, but the drivers must take control of their own lives and their passengers’ lives. I experienced a relatively new safety feature recently with my father. He drove in an unfamiliar and confusing area, so he closely looked at his phone’s map (hands-free); but then, as our car essentially yelled at him to break immediately, he nearly crashed into a car stopped at a red light. Everybody came out of the incident unharmed, and my dad and I laughed in fear. The rest of the trip, to and from our destination, went smoothly. The fact still stands that the incident could’ve harmed someone. While driving, especially in unfamiliar areas, we must exercise caution.

I obtained my driver’s license in September 2022. But unlike what teen drivers are known for, I try to drive safely each time I touch the road. For a while now, I’ve feared driving due to the complex maneuvers required to effectively conduct such a massive hunk of machinery. But extreme fear while driving can cause problems. For example, driving slower than traffic can cause other drivers to road rage and tailgate. Panicking too much also reduces a person’s focus, so an anxious driver may not recognize an impending danger on the road, and then they’ll fail to react appropriately. Of course, fearless driving causes problems too. For example, driving way over the speed limit on a seemingly empty road may lead to crashing into a slower car or pedestrians. To avoid problems, people must stay attentive of all things inside and outside their cars. So, when driving, we should put our phones away, turn the radio off or set it to a low volume, and drive with fewer people so that fewer people can distract us. We should also keep our eyes moving to keep track of the entire road, check our mirrors, maintain a three-second following distance (or more, if the road conditions require it), and strive to drive close to the speed limit during safe conditions. To improve the journey of everybody on the road with me, I follow these steps and more each time I drive.

Ever since the last century, cars have run this nation; some other countries, with more public transportation available, don’t experience the same number of car-related deaths as us. If the U.S. continues using automobiles at this rate, it must adapt to the problems that arrive with it. We must adapt to it. The problem affects the families of each person living in this nation, so more must occur to protect each other. With a combined effort across the nation, between the citizens and the government, we can reduce the terror that plagues our roads.