Name: Whitney Durocher
From: Helena, MT
Votes: 0
While
growing up, safe driving was always a huge focus in my family since
my father has been teaching drivers ed for 15 years. When I
was young, I was always taught as a passenger to wear my seatbelt and
avoid distracting the driver. After I got to be old enough to start
driving myself, my father was so nervous about me getting behind the
wheel. He knew I was taught the basics and I knew to wear my seatbelt
every time I entered a vehicle, but he was afraid because of all the
horrible accidents that arise from distracted driving in teens.
Distracted driving has become a huge problem in our generation
because young adults have so many things that can distract them from
their smartphones, to other passengers, to loud music and more. So
many drivers are so concerned with keeping up on the latest social
media post or answering that text as soon as they get it that they
are not looking at the bigger picture. That post or text will be
there after you arrive safely. Limiting distractions while driving
will help tremendously from the amount of deaths related to driving.
I
work on trying to become a safer driver every single time I enter the
vehicle. The first thing I do as I enter the vehicle is to put my
seatbelt on, so I don’t forget, and then put my phone on silent so
I am not tempted to check it while I am on the road. Another way I
limit distractions is to make sure the volume on the radio and the
temperature in the vehicle is comfortable before I start driving.
This way I am not busy fiddling with things on the control system
while I am driving. Additionally, I make sure every passenger in my
vehicle understands that our main priority in the vehicle is to
arrive at our destination safely, and all members in the vehicle have
a part in that goal.
