Importance of Driving

Speeding Costs More Than a Fine

In the year 2019, 9,478 people tragically lost their life from excessive speeding-related

accidents (NHTSA 1). That number can be reduced through better impulse control. Many factors influence individual driving practices. These factors include work, home life issues, traffic, tardiness and other stressful situations they may be facing. Sometimes taking a moment to relax can be all you need before getting behind the wheel, even if you are late. Leaving earlier the next time you drive can save you from running late. Driving recklessly not only endangers your life, but those around you. Going too fast could even end the life of someone you know and love. The

weight of causing a fatal collision may haunt you for the rest of your life. If you are going too fast, then you have less time to react. The less time you have to react, the easier it is to crash. Even the slightest distraction can cause you to slam into another car and seriously injure or kill another human. Speeding has many costs: money, lives, and mental health.

Speeding violations have monetary implications like fines, increased insurance

deductibles, and medical bills. Fines alone can be hefty. Speeding tickets cost approximately $150. That does not include court fees and other unforeseen costs. The highest speeding ticket ever recorded was $1 million. Speeding tickets can be the least of your worries when it comes to expenses. Car insurance is also both necessary and costly. If you get in an accident or a ticket, this can cause your insurance to shoot up. If you damage another car, you pay a deductible that depends on your insurance coverage. Being issued traffic citations and/or violations can cost you

exponentially. Your insurance costs can double. That means your monthly payments will now cost you double. Additionally, this can ruin your relationship with people that pay for your insurance.

If you damage your own car in an accident and it is not drivable, it can also affect your

ability to work. Not working can cost you money and even make you lose your job. Moreover, it could potentially be taking away from someone else’s work time.

On another note, driving fast leads to faster gas consumption. At this moment in time, gas prices are at an all-time high. This is yet another disadvantage of speeding.

Damaging someone’s car is costly but on top of that medical bills can add another

expense. You might injure yourself and other drivers and their passengers. Those medical bills can and will add up quickly.

On a more devastating note, injury may be the least of your worries. Car crashes can

absolutely be fatal. The force of two colliding cars can end someone’s life. The consequences consist of jail time, losing loved ones and affecting other people’s lives significantly. If you are charged with Vehicular Homicide, your license can be suspended for one – five years and a possible jail sentence of up to 6 months. A first-degree misdemeanor offense occurs while speeding through a construction zone If the offense is repeated it then becomes a fourth-degree felony resulting in 18 months in prison. These reckless decisions will affect your life in multiple ways. If someone was in the car with you, they are put in harm’s way. Your friends and family will worry about your health and safety. Moreover, if your reckless driving continues they may

not want to associate with you.

One of the main issues to consider when speeding is how it affects others. The consequences you could be inflicting on someone else’s life is a responsibility you must take seriously. The emotional toll of losing life can affect the lives of many. That life you take is someone’s mother, child, sibling, or father. In 2019, there were 9,478 speed-related deaths. Of those deaths, 47% of those individuals were not wearing seat belts. 31% of the people that caused the deaths were 15-20-year-old males (NHTSA 1). This means that reckless driving occurs with young males behind the wheel more than anyone else. I would attribute this to the lack of maturity this demographic holds. In the past two decades, one-third of all motor vehicle deaths were speed-related. Also, 26% of traffic incidents were speed induced.

There are many ways to avoid aggressive drivers. One of these ways is moving from the left lane to the next lane over to the right. This helps reduce the chances of someone tailgating you. Giving speeding drivers more space is also helpful considering the faster they go the less control they have over their vehicle. Overall, use your best judgment and help avoid aggressive drivers. The best course of action to take when you believe someone is following you or trying to harm you is calling the police.

In conclusion, Speeding is unnecessary and is easily avoidable. It can result in multiple

negative consequences that outweigh the positives. Being late, agitated, or stuck in traffic are never reasons to start speeding. Getting a speeding ticket has many consequences including monetary and legal implications. Your insurance costs will increase which can increase your monthly expenses. Also, damaging your own car is costly as well. Many times the damage can impede your daily tasks that you must complete. If you do not have a car, you will need to find another form of transportation. This can end up taking time away from other people’s days.

Lastly, someone can be seriously hurt during a car crash caused by speeding. You may also have to pay for the medical bills of those affected by your own reckless driving. Paying for medical bills may be the least of your concerns. Death is a plausible outcome of accidents. The emotional toll that is inflicted on everyone involved is not something that should be overlooked. Your mental health will suffer from knowing the fact that you killed someone trying to be a few minutes earlier. As a society, we need to just slow down and relax before we get in the car and start speeding.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/8133-stress-10-ways-to-ease-stress

https://www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/speeding