To Drive or Not to Drive, That is the Question

Driving is a privilege. I think that most people forget that. Driving is not only a type of freedom but a pertinent responsibility. Being able to drive is something that a lot of people take for granted, which may cause them to act in ways that can harm other people or even themselves. Driving safety is a very important topic to me especially as a college student being that I have heard about and seen a plethora of car accidents and injuries envolving people who attend my university. I know that college is fun and a great way to gain an education as well as meet a lot of new people. Students are eager and social by going to campus events or parties, but a lot of the time the people who are driving to said events are under the influence, not wearing their seat belts, texting, or even scrolling on Instagram. These are extremely dangerous and selfish choices that many people make on a daily basis. I’ve even been a witness to actions like these while riding in a car which is very scary. This is why things as simple as asking your friend if they are ok to drive, offering to pay for a Uber or cab service, if the circumstances are safe, walking, telling your friend that you can text for them, or reminding your friend to stay off the phone while driving can help save one or multiple lives.

Driver education and car safety are important conversations that I often feel go unspoken about especially on college campuses. These topics are beyond important so that people stay up to date or possibly get refreshed about how to stay safe on the roads. You’d be surprised about what people don’t know. Educating yourself and others on driving safety will help reduce the amount of car related deaths and injuries. It is so disheartening that about 34,000 people die each year as a result of unsafe driving. Doing things such as going on a website provides a plethora of driving tips and things to practice while driving. For example on the website it helps explain the art of defensive driving which is always being aware of how close you are to other cars and remaining attentive with no distractions while driving. The website also provides tips that go a long way like not attempting to retrieve items that fall to the floor, having all your items at a reachable distance, wearing your seat belt, and of course always remaining sober. To me these tips where little things I wouldn’t normally think about, but will now make an active effort to contribute into my driving routine.

Thankfully me, my friends, or anyone in my close family hasn’t been involved in any deadly or dangerous car situations, but I had a classmate who was a victim of a car accident. She was crossing the street on campus and a car had hit her. It was disheartening to see her in person because a lot of people around campus had been talking about the event, so to see her and her arm in a sling really put things into perspective. Your actions truly have consequences, is the sentence that kept repeating in my head. Thankfully she was healthy with no detrements to her health, but had the person who hit her pressed the gas just a little harder she could’ve been in far worse predicament. This event was definitely a wake up call for me. I would never want to be in a situation like the one my classmate was in or cause a situation like that. It made me think about myself and do a little self reflection. I asked myself if my driving tendencies and habits were the safest, or if I can improve and do my part ot make the roads safer. When I drive I make sure to practice defensive driving and pay attention to not only what I’m doing on the road but what others are doing as well. Although I have some good driving habits I know that I could work on turning down my music to help me be more aware of my surroundings and minimize distractions. I know that I should also silence my phone so that I won’t have that as a tempation. Like I stated before driving is a privilege and a freedome. By making sure that I’m taking all of the necessary precautions so that I won’t endanger myself or others is a very necessary and important start.