The Importance of Safe Driving

Imagine you were leaving your friend’s house a little bit tipsy but figured what could really go wrong? Or maybe you left their house in a hurry, without putting on your seatbelt. Maybe it’s late and you’re tired, you fall asleep behind the wheel. Imagine you drive a bit faster than you’re supposed to, just for fun. Now imagine swerving into another lane, hitting another car. Running a red light and slamming into a semi-truck. Losing control of the wheel and ramming into a tree. Now imagine you are dead, your phone is ringing, it’s your mom or your dad, maybe your little sister. You cannot answer it, because you drove stupidly and now, you’re dead. You will not get to grow up, go to college, get a job, get married, have kids. You will be a headstone among thousands. Your mom will never get to tell you she loves you ever again. Your father will not get to walk you down the aisle. Your little sister will have to go through life without an older sibling for guidance. All because you were reckless.

Unfortunately, these circumstances are not an imaginary tale for thousands and thousands of people, young and old. Millions of lives are cut short because of reckless driving, whether they were the one doing it or just a passing victim. In order to prevent such meaningless deaths every single person who gets behind a wheel must be educated. Luckily, driver’s education is a class every single driver has to go through before they get their license. In driver’s education students learn road signs, driving scenarios, parking, driving laws, and are shown the many responsibilities they undertake when they finally get the chance to drive. These classes are essential, they give everyone the opportunity to learn how to drive safely in order to prevent deaths as a result of driving.

However, many people do not take these lessons to heart. They joke during class and the importance of safe driving never truly sinks in until they are one of the victims of an accident. I think driver’s education should be taught in schools everywhere. When I took my driver’s education class it was for two to three hours every weekday for two weeks. It was also during covid so it was impossible to tell if anyone was actually paying attention. Two to three hours is a large amount of time to keep someone’s attention, if driver’s education was taught in high school, lessons could be covered in shorter sessions which would make it easier for students to give their full attention to learning about driver safety. Plus, there would be more time if the class was over the course of a year, driver education could be covered more in-depth. Tests could be given out over the course of an entire school year and if a student did not pass the class then they would have to retake it. Having driver’s education be part of the high school curriculum would do a much better job of ensuring that young drivers had the knowledge they need to be safe on the road. To take it a step further, there should be more presentations from people who have been victims of car accidents. In my high school we had the mother of a teenager who died in a drunk driving accident come in and tell the story to the entire junior and senior class. Hearing a mother talk about the death of her son brought the importance of driver’s safety to the front of my mind whenever I see someone driving irresponsibly.

It is impossible to make others choose to do the right thing, all we can do is educate and hope that teenagers make the right choice. I have had to make difficult decisions when it came to getting in a car with certain people. I have been in the passenger seat of several cars and on a couple of occasions I had to speak up. I used to have a friend who would drive high and offer to take me places, but I always said no and told her she should not drive. I had to put my safety over convenience and friendship and instead of getting a ride from friends who I knew were under some type of influence I called my mom and had her pick me up. This has led to me missing out on a lot of activities, but I know I do not want to be the son/daughter of the woman that spoke to us at school. The hardest thing I ever had to do was tell my mom when a family member of mine drove while drinking while I was in the car. I was incredibly uncomfortable but did not know what to do because this person I was with was an older cousin and I did not want to say something to them, but I also wanted them to be safe. My mom ended up talking to them and while I do not know exactly what happened, they have never driven and drank with me again.

Now that I can drive, I pride myself on being a safe driver. When I first got my license, even though it was tough, I did not drive my friends’ places until the “wait period” had passed; this was not true of many of my peers. I was made fun of and peer-pressured but knowing what would happen if I was the reason, we got into a car accident was enough to keep me firm in my decisions. I want to have a future to live out my dreams and I want that for my friends too so I often remind them about what is safe and what is not, but I cannot make decisions for them. The only person I can be in charge of is myself so I try my best to be the safest driver I can be and encourage others to do the same.