Name: Caroline Louisa Bell
From: Henrico, VA
Votes: 0
It’s
Friday night. The most popular kid in the grade is throwing the
biggest rager of the year after the homecoming football game. Tens to
hundreds of cars filled with energized teens zoom out of the parking
lot to the party location. They are all going wild. The house is
filled with the sound of music, shouting, and laughter with a slight
stench of alcohol and nacho cheese. 1 AM rolls around. Kids start
stumbling to their cars, hazily driving back home. One group of boys
hits the road. They continue to blast music, throwing jokes and
gossiping about the people they were just with. They are young, care
free, ambitious. However, in the blink of an eye, the distracted
driver loses control, the car flips over the side of the road, and
their laughter is never heard again.
Does
this story sound familiar? It should. Occurrences like this sadly
happen too often. Most of the drivers on the roads today are
distracted, preoccupied by their phones, other passengers, the radio,
etc. In high school drivers ed courses, teachers emphasize the
importance of being focused while driving. They drill statistics of
car accidents and deaths into the student’s heads, creating alert,
attentive drivers. Unfortunately, after a little time on the road,
teens lose their caution and become the reckless, distracted drivers
we see today. Sadly, it’s not just teens that become absent-minded
and careless. Adults tend to become comfortable with driving and use
their time in the car to make phone calls, online shop, send emails,
etc. On average, 3,287 people die per day due to car accidents. Now,
most would think this statistic would be enough for drivers to become
more cautious and focused while on the road. But, not many humans are
aware of this catastrophic detail because deaths due to automobile
collisions have become a common thing and are not usually highlighted
in the news. Therefore, it is vital that people become educated on
the dangers of driving through campaigns, advertisements, and
courses. The DMV should take action in requiring drivers ed
courses for all ages. One 9 week course when someone is 16 doesn’t
efficiently teach individuals everything they need to know about
driving; they need refreshers in order to ensure that people
understand how deadly navigating a motor vehicle can actually be. As
well, there needs to be stricter laws regarding distracted driving so
as to guarantee that the roads are filled with the most concentrated
drivers possible.
Fortunately,
I have never been in a car crash myself but I have known people that
have endured the pain. This past year, a senior from my high school
died because he ran into a traffic light at one in the morning. He
had the potential to live an amazing life and do some much but that
all went away due to one slip of his foot on the accelerator. I never
want to bring that type of hurt and misery upon my family due to my
carelessness and foolishness. As a young driver, I will ensure that I
am 100% focused while on the road. The phone will stay in my backpack
and conversations will be had when I arrive at the end destination. I
will also ensure that those I am riding with are concentrated as
well, spreading the importance of attentive driving to all those
around me. My small impacts might not bring the statistic of
automobile deaths from 3,257 to 0 overnight; but, if all humans took
these tiny steps, sirens would sound a little less and tragic phone
calls would be rarely heard.
