The empowerment of education for driving

Safety on the road is life and death. Many people fail to understand the concept that they are in a multi thousand pound piece of metal that is more than capable of killing somebody or themselves. For humans, the average athletic sprint is 18 mph. This is for trained athletes who are in shape. With all of the life assistance humans have like the grocery store and “junk” food, not all humans are in this kind of shape. When society makes it acceptable to drive at speeds of 60+ mph, society must also make safety and precautions a priority for the common people. Some people will not wear a seatbelt which is a necessary safety precaution for themselves. In some cases, people know this and ignore this fact and stack it up to “it’ll be fine” or make irresponsible decisions like “I only had two beers im fine to drive”. However, some people were never taught the dangers of these aspects or of reckless driving. This lack of education can be detrimental to the safety of the road.

Without proper education people can not make educated safe decisions when driving, not only with circumstances where driving is unsafe but also predicaments in which people may be put in while on the road. It is essential that anyone who is given a license and goes on the road should be informed of all the situations to be put in and their outcome. Of course not every possible scenario can be taught, there are limits. With every driving scenario being unique, there must be a way to teach general driving events that would show dangerous scenarios. Put people to the test on how to react, test reaction time, and see where their rational thinking comes from. With this education people could make more calculated decisions and may be more aware and make responsible choices when driving. The idea of “putting the fear of god” in someone could be good for the safety of more than one person on the road. However in order to do this, initiative must be taken.

Telling people that driver training is available will not make people do it. Many people are too lazy to take the time and educate themselves on such a serious matter. It must be mandated and free for people to take it seriously. Driver education should be provided and required by state governments in order to receive a driver’s license. If it costs people money, not everyone will be able to afford it, and if it’s not mandated people will not bother taking the time to do it. Drivers making uncalculated decisions is the reason for many accidents. In a similar sense, a personal incident was a near accident because of another person’s bizarre and reckless actions. Thankfully my patient and smooth driving saved both of us from a very unpleasant day.

As I was pulling out of a parking lot to a near stop light with a center median dividing the opposing directions I slowly accelerated away from the parking lot towards the traffic light only 50 or so feet away. As I was pulling nearer, I was forced to slam on my brakes due to a reckless driver turning left from the highway into my lane on the wrong side of the median. It was because of my quick reaction and smooth driving that the situation did not end in a collision. I remember that moment as a reference to always be a defensive driver.

Educating others is always helpful, but not everyone takes education the same way. Some people will listen and practice, but all advice goes in one ear and out the other. The only person that we can be sure is learning is ourselves. We must take our own initiative to educate ourselves on how to drive at a higher level of safety than others around us. Doing this will promote safety within groups and keep us safe as well. If everyone focuses on educating themselves, it could be a turning point in history for the time period of modern automotives. Becoming a beacon of knowledge will help lead others to the high road of safe driving and improve driving all around. Leaders use many tactics to accomplish goals, one of the best ways is leading by example. Become a leader in the driving community. Take it upon yourself as a calling to educate yourself and practice how to be safe on the road, and help save lives. It is through this that the road will become a safer place for all of us.