Driver Education

The importance of driver education in reducing the number of deaths as a result of driving, cannot be understated. Through proper education and instruction, a new driver can safely learn the rules of the road and apply them daily. Whether it is road sign knowledge and what each sign means, following the speed limit, moving over for stranded motorists and law enforcement, construction zone safety, or defensive driving, each one plays an important role in driver safety for the driver and those around them. My grandpa was a driver’s license examiner for the state of Ohio for 28 years. My mom always uses situations that she would see while driving, to explain to me and my sister what she or the other drivers did wrong and how they could correct it the next time. I feel this was a big help to my driving and no doubt was a result of my grandpa, who was a driver’s license examiner for Ohio, doing the same for her and her siblings.

Steps can be taken to reduce the number of deaths related to driving. I feel overall most states are doing their best to limit the number of fatalities from automobile accidents. An example is the Move Over, Slow Down Law in Ohio. If you see a vehicle on the side of the road with flashing lights on, the law is to cautiously shift over one lane – or slow down if changing lanes is not possible. I know in our area, a teen driver hit a car that was on the shoulder, where the driver was fixing a flat tire. Unfortunately, the crash ended in the loss of the man’s life. If the Move Over, Slow Down Law had been in place then, perhaps this accident could have been avoided. We also have speed limits, traffic cameras, law enforcement out patrolling, and we cannot forget our own ability to help. I have a dash cam that is mounted by my rearview mirror that records both the front and back views. Though I have had no reason to pull my own recordings, I have seen many of the fail videos on YouTube and social media. Thanks to people uploading their own accidents and experiences, we can learn how to handle similar situations. Driver education, a useful tool, can utilize these videos for teaching the next new drivers how to handle them and the results that came from someone else’s driving, whether it was a close call, a serious accident or even a fatality.

My family are all pretty good drivers, thanks to my grandpa’s influence, and my uncle being a police officer. We were always taught to respect law enforcement, be polite, do as they ask, and we can deal with it at the station, if it proceeds to that. Thankfully that has never happened, knock on wood. One night recently, we were coming home late from Columbus and another driver was driving at us, on the wrong side of the interstate on a 4-lane area. We moved to the lane furthest to the right and slowed down, while the car coming at us was in the left lane. It passed us and we saw the semi behind us flashing its headlights, warning the car driving at it. We called 911, and luckily no accidents were reported

We can all take steps to be better drivers. Leaving a little more room in between our car and the vehicle in front of us is a great way to avoid a collision. Whether it is with the car we are behind or something in front of them, that they can see and have time to avoid, but we cannot. We should also think before we react to another driver. Road rage has caused many accidents and even resulted in fatalities from the crashes or fights between the drivers. The videos that I have watched on social media have taught me that we don’t always know the situation, that our assumptions could be wrong, maybe for a medical emergency, car malfunction, someone experiencing road rage, or sometimes it is just a careless driver. I have found that apps, like Waze are beneficial in alerting drivers to objects on the road, cars on the shoulder, heavy traffic that could be stopped ahead, and crashes. I have also found that a dash cam can come in handy. My mom and sister have both said that it makes them feel safer to have it. They have made the screen on the cam light up, so the car behind them can see it, and the vehicle following too closely has backed off, which is useful late at night when they are alone, and someone is making them feel uncomfortable. These are all important steps, but the most important and first tool, is driver education, teaching new drivers the proper way to drive, the laws and what they mean to drivers.