Continuous Education for Safer Roads

Driving is a privilege that should never be taken lightly. A car can be dangerous to drive even with proper education. Without proper education it can be deadly. You cannot learn too much about vehicles and driving safety before getting behind the wheel of a car. Knowledge is power and safety. It is absolutely essential for keeping everyone safe on our roads and reducing driving-related deaths.

Parents should be the first driving influencers. Kids learn from and absorb the surroundings they grow up in, including how their parents and loved one’s drive. Make seat belts mandatory in your car. Make cell phones off limits to drivers in your car. Have difficult conversations about the dangers of driving tired, drunk, or intoxicated. As kids grow up explain to them what you are doing while driving, things you are paying attention to, and road rules you are following. Teach kids the importance of and how to change the oil in a car and how to change a tire. Learning how a car works and the importance of maintenance keeps people from breaking down while driving. It can lessen the time spent in a dangerous spot on the side of a busy roadway if it does happen, which in turn can lead to lessening accidents and driving-related deaths too. Teach kids that cars are a serious piece of machinery and not a toy. When they get to driving age themselves and take a driver’s education course to get their license they will be prepared and confident when it’s time to drive.

Keeping proper emergency kits in your car can help to reduce driving-related deaths. A basic kit with first aid, a tool to cut a seat belt and break a window, road flares and jumper cables are a necessity. In places with extreme weather conditions a little more is needed. Living in the south, I always have extra water and snacks if I’m taking a road trip. My sister was in a remote part of Florida when her car broke down. It was over 100 degrees outside that day. She was told it would be a few hours before anyone could get to her. She had been outside in the heat all day working in the field. She was running low on water and had eaten the last of her food hours before. Luckily, they were able to get someone out sooner. She already wasn’t feeling well when her car broke down. Whether it’s water and tools to keep cool in the south or thermal blankets in areas it snows, the proper emergency kit can help save a life.

Education should also not stop at 16. I believe continuing education classes should be mandatory for everyone that drives. Cars continue to change. Roads continue to grow. Laws change from state to state and year to year. We put everyone in danger by not testing our elderly. Our faculties naturally diminish as we age. Reaction time slows and memory declines. Every elderly family member that I have witnessed going through that process had their driving privileges taken away by a family member way later than it should have been. Accidents happened. My grandparents called for help because they went for a drive and forgot where they were going and didn’t know where they were anymore. Everyone came out physically unharmed, but that isn’t always the case. Testing our elderly and taking away driving privileges at the right time would also keep our roads safer and reduce driving-related deaths.

I have been in a couple of car accidents. Always as a passenger and never as a driver. One of them was a minor fender bender. The car I was in was rear ended when another car hit a large puddle of water and lost control causing it to slide across the wet road. The driver that hit the puddle was educated on how to maneuver a vehicle in that situation causing it to only be a minor fender bender and not worse.The second accident I was in was a little more serious. The driver of my car wasn’t paying attention to our green light and hesitated before accelerating through the light. The driver of the car that hit us wasn’t paying attention to his red light and ran the light way after it changed to red. Our hesitation didn’t even deter the accident. Their small car hit the side of our van hard enough to push us across the street stopping less than an inch from a light pole. A few of us got concussions and my friend’s little brother was taken to the hospital with head injuries that caused blackouts and seizures for many years following the accident. That one scared me and affected the kind of driver that I have been through the years.

The education of drivers is essential to road safety and should never stop while we are using the privilege of driving a vehicle. It needs to start with parents being a good example of safe driving. Learning how a car works and understanding basic maintenance. Drivers’ education classes before obtaining a license and continuing education for as long as we choose to drive. Educating others and being a good example will help make our roads a safer place to be.