Driving Towards Safety: Empowering Minds for Safer Roads

I’m sure everyone has at least one experience of being in the car with someone driving irresponsibly. Unfortunately, some of these ends up in the tragic loss of life for those involved. I personally have been in these situations whether its family members trying to get somewhere quickly or friends who are doing it for fun. I will admit that I am not immune to this either. I’ve caught myself also being way too risky on the road at times. It’s important to mention that everyone is susceptible to this kind of risky behavior. No matter how much you trust someone or how long they’ve been driving. Knowing this, you can be better prepared to take a stand to protect your own health and inform others of the deadly effects of trying to get somewhere just five minutes earlier.

There are a variety of reasons why fatal car accidents happen. Some major ones however are drunk driving, reckless driving, distracted driving, and weather conditions. As I’ve said before, awareness of these major causes, no matter if you are the driver or the passenger, can greatly reduce the risks of fatal accidents as you are looking out for the signs. For drunk driving, if you or someone who’s driving seems inebriated in any way, you should actively refuse to drive or get in the car and enforce those same measures on others with you. One that is used in my family is putting all keys in a secure area away from those who are drinking. Reckless driving usually goes with driving under the influence but it still can happen without the influence of drugs. It usually comes in the form of speeding or swerving around traffic. Passengers demanding a driver to follow the speed limit or stay in one lane can help reduce the likelihood of the driver driving in the same manner again as they will know you won’t ride with them anymore if they continue this behavior. Distracted driving can be reduced by active efforts from both the driver and passengers. The driver must always remember to keep their eyes on the road ahead of them and passengers must also do their part by reducing distractions to the driver. Weather conditions should be known before you drive so you can have an idea of what to expect on the road. Being prepared for weather events such as heavy snow, rain, fog, and knowing how to deal with them will drastically decrease the chances of fatal accidents from the weather.

Everything I’ve said above is great if you know it. However, in order for these measures to be effective at reducing deaths while driving, people need to be taught and informed of them. This is why governments and organizations spend so much money on billboards explaining new traffic laws or mandatory classes when people are first learning how to drive. Educating the public on traffic laws, what not to do while driving, what happens when you take the risk, and steps to mitigate that risk will, over time, as more and more people are informed this way, reduce the number of deaths. For example, in my state Michigan, marijuana was decriminalized and we saw a surge of driving accidents involving weed occur. Since there wasn’t much public information out there, some people didn’t think driving high was as bad as drunk driving. However, alcohol and marijuana impair the body in a similar way and so the government started a campaign recently with billboards on highways warning of the risk that driving under the influence of marijuana can have. Similar to drunk driving, it is expected the more awareness brought to the issue, the more people will think twice about getting into a car impaired with marijuana or even stop others from doing it as well.

When it comes to myself driving responsibly, there are many things I can do to be a safer driver. I can be mindful of traffic laws and aware of others on the road. I need to be thoughtful of the dangers when driving self-inflicted or natural. Making good decisions that reduce the risk of driving deaths are especially important to keep myself and those I love and care about out of harm’s way. To help others be safer drivers, I can make sure they are also making good decisions and intervene when necessary as I hope they do to me as well. Informing drivers of hazards on the road such as ice or red lights encourage them to keep their attention on the road more. Sharing new traffic laws, such as one that was recently passed which made touching a phone while driving a violation in Michigan, is important to spread awareness. It’s also important to spread awareness about misconceptions with the intoxication of different substances. Even if only a few people follow these steps, it can make the risk of driving much less and have your loved ones not have to hear that dreaded call.