The Two-Second Click: Driving Safety and Importance

Being able to drive is a great luxury that many people do not have the opportunity to indulge in. With a turn of a key and the stir of an engine, we can easily get from point A to point B. This luxury, however, is easily taken advantage of through unsafe driving habits that can substantially impact the lives of others around us and ourselves. Having proper driver education is imperative to reduce deaths, accidents, and irresponsibility.

Driver education is very important to our daily safety on the road. Driver education not only teaches you the basics of driving, but it also brings light to many laws, tips, and basics to becoming a better driver. Having proper education can greatly reduce death by providing us with the tools we need to be observant drivers. Deaths are reduced as a result of driver education because it emphasizes many laws. Many laws such as speed limits teach us to be safe and employ safe driving techniques. Through my experience in driver education, being alert was constantly emphasized when it comes to the specific laws of driving. If you are not alert, you can easily miss signs—such as speed reductions—that can result in accidents and deaths. Recently, in my community, a driver did not notice the speed change which resulted in a terrible accident resulting in death. Driver education constantly reiterates the importance of being aware of your surroundings and paying close attention to all changes on the road. Driver education also brings to light many tips, tips that reduce the chances of accidents and death. In driver education, they bring significant awareness on how you should drive in certain weather conditions which is very important to know because you want to be equipped for all driving situations. Driver education is also significant in teaching the basics of how to drive and use your vehicle. They reiterate basics such as checking around your vehicle to make sure everything looks normal, wearing a seat belt, and how to align your mirrors. All of the basic skills taught lead to safer driving performance which can significantly reduce the rate of death.

Many steps can be implemented as a driver to reduce causalities. The first step is the two-second click. Fastening your seat belt is a needed step to ensure safety and reduce harm. Seatbelts allow for the reduction of death on the road because they allow for your body to not be jolted through your vehicle (in the case of an accident). Another step that is very important to reduce death on the road is putting away distractions. Driving safely should always be the main goal. When we let the business and pressures of life affect our driving, it greatly affects our performance. Simple tasks such as putting on makeup, changing a song, or reading a text should never be done in a moving vehicle. As responsible drivers, we should always make sure we are properly cognizant of our surroundings. If someone has been under the influence or if someone is extremely fatigued, they should never be on the road driving. Avoiding reckless decisions such as drinking and driving and driving whilst sleepy can be easy steps to avoid casualties on the road.

I personally have been in one car accident in my life. It was a snowy day and my mom did not notice the stop sign, therefore, proceeding into traffic and was hit by the side of the vehicle. Everyone was fine and no significant car damage occurred; however, it was a scary experience that could have been easily avoided by slowing down and taking the measures to properly observe all surroundings. Being in high school, I have witnessed numerous instances of irresponsible driving. Many teenagers are in a rush or do not take the responsibility of driving seriously. I have noticed many times when my peers will be on their phones while driving. This two-second decision of responding to a text can result in great consequences that many people do not take seriously. Another component of unsafe driving that I have witnessed is the lack of seat belts and the lack of helmets. Many people are bothered by the usage of a seat belt because they think they are uncomfortable but the two-second click is imperative to be safe. Also, it greatly bothers me when people choose to not wear helmets as motorcyclists. Motorcycle safety is something that drivers should not take lightly and wearing a helmet should be a top priority for safe driving.

Personally, the steps that I can take to be a safer driver is to just slow down and not be in such a hurry. Many times we are all in such a rush to get from point A to point B that we end up making irresponsible decisions such as following too closely or speeding. The decisions that we make when we are in a rush are usually not wise and can lead to unsafe driving habits. A simple step that I can take to be a safer driver is to give myself more time to get to my destination safely. When we become in a hurry and our more focused on being late, our main focus on safe driving is skewed. Our top focus should always be our awareness on the road and being in a rush oftentimes makes us less aware of our surroundings. Overall as a driver, an easy step that I can implement to be safe is to simply slow down and be more aware.

All in all, being properly educated on driving is a necessity. We must become aware of our surroundings and take notice of the laws and basics of driving. Without proper driver education, we fail to make wise decisions on the road which results in accidents and sometimes death. From the two-second click to putting our phones away, we can easily become safer, wiser drivers.