Driving safely

The extensive driver education that is required before you can get a license is incredibly important. I recommend going through the class even if you are over the age of 18 when you receive your license.With more education, drivers are more knowledgeable about the risks of driving recklessly, how to solve a problem in a moment of crisis, for example sliding on ice, and what to do if one is in a situation where a crash is inevitable. Drivers education teaches how to keep us, our passengers and our vehicle as safe as possible. I also think it is incredibly important that there is a separate class before you are allowed to operate a motorcycle. The risks are more elevated and protection of yourself is important as fatalities are more likely to occur in a motorcycle crash.

In the state of Michigan there are countless laws about how one should operate a vehicle. Safety codes, a specific amount of safety features and super specific laws about how stable a person must be to operate a vehicle. If one is under the influence of drugs, alcohol or certain prescription drugs that warn you otherwise, you are forbidden from operating a vehicle. The state of Michigan just put into effect a new law about hands free phone usage. It clearly states that any person while driving (even stopped at red lights) is forbidden from using their phone if it is not hands free. This new law makes it where drivers, especially young drivers are less likely to be distracted while driving. If you are caught doing so, there are extensive consequences. If less people drive while under the influence, on their phone and drive more responsibly, the amount of crashes with fatal outcomes would decrease significantly.

I have been in several car accidents. One where I was driving and two where I was not. When I was in third grade, my family was in a car accident driving back from kalamazoo. As we turned left into a bob evans parking lot from the turn lane, a man driving towards us through an intersection, went through the red light. After the collision in which he T Boned us, we discovered he had been on his phone. No fatalities occurred, However, the damage to both vehicles was severe. My mother had to be pulled from the vehicle with the jaws of life as her door had taken most of the impact,and had to be taken to the hospital with a neck injury.

I also have a friend who drives a 2008 mustang. He speeds, drives while intoxicated, and often drives while on his cellular device. He has been in a car crash in the past six months. He ended up being alright but it just goes to show that if you are not careful while you are driving, accidents can happen. In August of 2022, I was in a car accident while backing out of my driveway. A man had pulled out of the McDonalds on our street and sped easily 10 miles over the speed limit down our street. He clipped the edge of my rear bumper and pulled my car out of the driveway, and several hundred yards. My car was totaled and I ended up with severe whiplash simply because this man drove recklessly on a side street. Since then I make sure I check extra goods before I back out of my driveway.

My father used to drive a commercial vehicle for hotel laundry and he often had to deal with reckless driving, road rage from other drivers and precarious weather conditions. He is the one who taught me how to drive in the snow, ice and rain. The practice one gets in these circumstances, prepares a young driver to drive on their own in such conditions.

I got my permit the second I was old enough, and my license after I turned 16. As a young driver the anxiety of being in control of a motor vehicle is intense. But with proper training, time on the road with a licensed adult, and many hours of class time I learned to handle the vehicle well. In order to drive safely, I follow the guidelines provided by my state. I don’t go more than 5 miles per hour over the speed limit, and I put my phone in the backseat of my car so it is not a distraction. I never drive under the influence for two reasons. One, I don’t consume things that could affect me as such. Two, the result is usually an accident that could have been easily avoided. Doing all of these things makes me a safer driver and protects me, my friends and family and the people of my community from a potentially fatal car accident.