Name: James Phillip Koehler Jr.
From: Vienna, Ohio
Votes: 0
Koehler
3
James
Koehler Jr.
Behind
the Wheel
Car
crashes are terrifying. Although I was not involved in one myself, my
mother and sister were, all due to a reckless driver in a truck
travelling too fast down a snow-covered, ice-ridden road. Because of
the unsavory conditions, my mom and sister were thrown from the road
and rolled one and a half times. Fortunately, they were both fine,
but they could have easily died had something been different. Despite
not being directly involved in this, it was still an eye opening
experience to the consequences a single reckless driver can have on
others. There could be multiple causes as to why the truck driver
drove as he did; maybe he did not know the proper regulations of the
road, or he was never taught the dangers of reckless driving. Either
way, it is important that drivers educate themselves and focus on the
road as to not endanger the lives of themselves or others.
Proper
drivers ed can be the difference between life and death.
Without proper education, a driver may have to make a split second
decision that could cost them their lives. Their lack of knowledge
can slow their ability to process the situation. As such, the driver
might not be able to act fast enough or make the best decisions in
the moment, which could lead to either themselves or others. There
are multiple ways to prevent careless deaths such as these, such as,
as stated earlier, making sure new drivers receive the appropriate
education; anything from the meanings of the signs on the road, to
what to do when caught on a slippery surface. This knowledge could
save lives if retained, so it is important that it is engraved into
the memories of new drivers.
Another
way to safen the roads is to encourage teenagers to speak up when
they feel uncomfortable on the road. As it stands right now,
according to dosomething.org, “Only 44% of teens said they would
definitely speak up if someone were driving in a way that scared
them” (dosomething.org par. 6). This means that more than half of
all teens would rather risk a dangerous driver than speak up to them
about it. If teens speak more openly to risky drivers, that could
help to reduce the amount of hazardous driving and, thusly, the
amount of accidents on the road. Passengers should also help the
driver to keep their focus on the road as much as possible. Instead
of allowing the driver to fumble around with a map for directions,
passengers should take up that responsibility, and any other that
would take away a driver’s focus. Safer driving also falls onto the
shoulders of the drivers themselves. If they feel uncomfortable with
a specific aspect of the road, such as backing into parking spaces or
parallel parking, they should work on improvement in those areas. If
they do not, they risk causing an accident due to inexperience,
making the roads infinitely more hazardous for just about everyone.
Works
Cited
“11
Facts about Teen Driving.” DoSomething.org,
www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-teen-driving#fn1.
Accessed 13 November
2019.
