Stay Alive While You Drive

Driver’s education is significantly important for many reasons. Firstly, it is very important to know what you as a driver must be aware of when you first get behind the wheel of a vehicle. Besides knowing the instrument gauges and familiarizing yourself with where all the important features of the vehicle are, you must also know the rules/laws of the road. This is extremely important and making sure to adhere to the rules/laws, can and will determine what and what not will happen when you are behind a 4,100 plus pound vehicle. Focus and paying attention while behind the wheel of a vehicle can help you avoid accidents. Not all can be avoided and most importantly, not all would have resulted if you are properly educated in driving.

When you first step inside a vehicle, there are specific things that a driver should always put into practice. First and foremost, put your phone away. Being on your phone is the most related problem with accidents today. New drivers especially are the ones who contribute to most deadly accidents because they cannot keep complete focus on the road but rather keep focusing on their phones. Another contributor to deadly accidents are elderly drivers. At one point in their lives they may have been safe drivers but as years go by, their senses are no longer sharp therefore are contributors to accidents. I believe contracts among new drivers and parents should be made and refresher courses should be given for older drivers. Parents should make it a point to discuss with their children of what they are/are not to do when they get behind the wheel of a vehicle. Refraining from phone usage while driving (even if you are not the driver), eating while driving, playing loud music, being under the influence, and driving while tired are all topics that need to be made discussed and agreed upon by both parents and children before they get behind the wheel of a vehicle. For the elderly, a refresher course should be implemented so that they continue to understand the rules/laws of driving. They may not like it, but it is something that needs to happen because a lot of accidents are caused by elderly drivers.

I myself am a new driver and I make it a point to not have my phone visible while I am driving. I do not even use my phone for directions, my parents gave me a Garmin to help with those situations. Even with my mother in the car, she always reminds me to keep a focus on the road especially with the other vehicles around me because even though I may be a safe driver, there are always other drivers who drive reckless hence becoming the cause of accidents. Luckily I have not been in any accidents and I plan to remain that way but I have been witness to a few accidents whether I was driving or just a passenger at the time. I have also witnessed a driver swirling through traffic and that was a scary instance. We have one life, why risk it by not following the rules/laws of the road. There are plenty of signs that state “Stay Alive, Don’t Text and Drive”, and signs that make drivers aware of road construction or to reduce speed, these signs are not there to be overlooked but rather to adhere to so that you arrive at your destination safe.

I am already doing my part in being a safe driver because I value my life. I want to come home and see my family and I will do everything in my power to make sure that continues. If drivers want to speed and swerve through traffic because they either did not give themselves enough time or are aggressive drivers, then the outcome for them will result in an accident, one that I hope to not be a part of when I am driving. I only wish that all drivers, new and old would help themselves and others by educating themselves with the rules/laws of driving. The last thing anybody wants to hear or be involved in, is an accident that could have been avoided if the driver were following the rules/laws of the road. The education is out there and the coursed can be done in the comfort of your home. You as a driver, new or old, are responsible for any action that happens whether good or bad once you are behind the wheel of a vehicle. Please everyone, Stay Alive While You Drive.