In the Drivers Seat

Almost all teenagers look forward to their sixteenth birthday, getting their driver’s license, and first car. It can be both an exciting and overwhelming time of life. Being in the driver’s seat is a huge responsibility for a new driver. The driver must think about their own safety, any passengers in the car, and other cars and pedestrians on the road. It is important to take this privilege seriously to keep all parties involved safe while traveling by car. Accidents can occur when driving just a few short blocks or during long distance road trips. I believe completing a driver’s education course is foundational in knowing the traffic laws and reducing the number of deaths in traffic accidents. It has been proven in a study at the University of Nebraska that teens who enroll in a driver’s education program are 75% less likely to violate traffic laws and receive traffic tickets. Graduates of a driving school are also 16% less likely to get into car accidents and 24% less likely to be involved in a fatal car accident. Young drivers tend to have this “invincibility” mindset and are a bit more reckless in their behavior which contributes to crashes and fatalities being the highest between the ages of 16 to 18. These reductions in accidents and deaths among teen drivers show how valuable it is to complete a driver’s education course.

The biggest area of improvement that I can see especially in my generation of young drivers is to limit cell phone usage while driving. Cell phones are such a huge part of our identity and social life and it is difficult to disconnect from them when getting into a car. I feel cell phones should actually be inactivated or placed in the center console or glove box to prevent any temptation to use while driving or glance at stop lights or stop signs. I have witnessed too many of my friends and family members use their cell phones to change the music, look at GPS for directions, answer text messages, or even create videos while driving. This behavior has resulted in hard stops, veering off the road, and even rear ending another vehicle. Cell phones clearly add another element of stress to inexperienced drivers and this puts them at higher risk for accidents.

One experience that personally hit very close to home for me happened about a year ago with a car full of kids I knew, one being a very good friend. This incident involved cell phones and alcohol. There were 4 teens in the car ages 16 and 17, two of them survived the accident, the other two did not. They were driving home very early in the morning after drinking and being distracted by their cell phones, the driver hit a tree head on. The car immediately caught fire and two of the kids could not get out of their seat belts in time. The two that made it out of the car had serious injuries, one being my friend. I am not aware if any of them had taken a driver’s education course, but I feel if all of them had it would have significantly reduced the likelihood that this event would have happened. If all four of them had the higher education and wisdom of the traffic laws from a certified driving teacher I believe at least one of them would have been able to speak up and make a good decision for all of them. Watching my friend heal from multiple surgeries and learning to walk again and re-learn all the things normal teenagers do has shown me how precious life is, how accidents happen to anyone, and how important it is to be responsible behind the wheel.

It is my hope that more teenagers will realize the seriousness of driving responsibly and see it as a privilege. I hope distractions will be minimized and more efforts will be made by car manufacturers to disable a vehicle if a cell phone is being used or if alcohol is detected. For myself I will plan to encourage any new drivers I know to enroll in a driver’s education course as they are learning to drive. Going forward I plan to keep my phone out of reach when driving, and will choose to use an uber if any alcohol has been in my presence or friends who I may get into a car with. We can all make a difference and keep more people safe while driving by bringing light to this subject. I believe young drivers can be safe and responsible with the proper education and knowing what things put them at risk.