Name: Sophie Hose
From: Marietta, Georgia
Votes: 0
Being
a Safe Driver
My
name is Sophie Hose, I am 20 years old and I am from Germany.
Currently, I am an Undergraduate student majoring in Exercise Science
at Life University in Marietta, Georgia and I will soon start my
Doctorate in Chiropractic at the same school.
I
got my first driver’s license in Germany and just recently got my
Georgia license. The differences in attaining these two licenses
could not have been bigger and I think that is one of the major
factors leading to the differences in accident statistics between
Germany and the US. Although people are allowed to drive faster most
of the time in Germany, the number of accidents is significantly
lower. We go through 14 hours of mandatory theoretical driver’s
education, then pass a theoretical test, then we have 30 hours of
actual driving in a practice car with an instructor (including
special lessons such as driving at night) before passing a 40 minute
practical driving test. Whether it is necessary or not to have this
many hours of practice is another debate, but I think that mandatory
theoretical and practical lessons with a qualified instructor are
very important to prepare young adults for being safe drivers and to
reduce the number of deaths related to driving.
Personally,
I have not yet been in a car accident but I have witnessed a few as a
bystander and I have been in situations where I was seriously scared
because of being with an irresponsible driver. People tend to speed,
be on their phone while driving or even drive intoxicated. I think
that the laws and the law enforcement regarding these safety issues
should be stricter to make driving safer for everyone. Georgia was
relatively late in prohibiting texting while driving and only
recently completely banned the use of phones while driving. People
argue that it happened too late and that now it will be impossible to
enforce these laws but I think that people can always change their
habits, especially if they are forced to by stricter consequences.
Growing
up, my parents always made it very clear that driving intoxicated is
never an option. I know that I could always ask them for money for
the bus, an Uber or a taxi if I really needed to and that is
something that I think more parents could offer their children in
order for them to be safer. Personally, I have never used my phone
while driving, I never sped and I have never driven intoxicated or
without my seatbelt. I think that this is due to my upbringing, my
extensive drivers ed and personal respect for the safety
hazards associated with it. If we all start holding our loved ones
responsible, if we show them that there are always options to avoid a
safety hazard, if we determine designated drivers and if we start
educating new drivers more extensively, we could make driving a lot
safer.
