Motor Vehicle Fatality Reduction

After the last day of school of my seventh grade year, my family got rear ended on our way out of school. The teenager who rear ended us was messing with the radio when he hit us. Luckily, the crash wasn’t too serious and nobody was injured. In 2022, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimated that 42,795 people died in motor vehicle accidents. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among teens and, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, it is the eighth leading cause of death for all age groups. To reduce these stats, education in the dangers that come with driving among our youth and laws to reduce specifically distracted driving crashes are steps that need to be taken. I can also take steps in my personal life to help prevent dangerous driving habits.

An important step that can be taken to reduce the number of deaths as a result of driving is to increase awareness and educate people, especially the youth, of the dangers of distracted driving. If you educate people when they are younger, they hopefully will apply this knowledge throughout their whole life. High schools could require or strongly encourage teenagers to take a four to six hour defensive driving class . In this class, teenagers get hands-on training in crash avoidance, distraction, panic stop, wheel drop, and car control and also get educated on the consequences of distracted driving and drunk driving as well. These classes will not just raise awareness for this problem but will also help teenagers with defensive driving skills to keep them safe on the road. Schools could plan a day to attend a class like this on the weekend, provide transportation, and encourage students to sign up and attend. High schools could also have local officers come in and teach a course on distracted and drunk driving on a school day. A local officer could give real life examples of what can happen when you are distracted or intoxicated while you drive. This will help teens get a better understanding of the result of their actions and then they will carry this knowledge through the rest of their lives. Another way to lower the fatalities in motor vehicle crashes, specifically distracted driving accidents, is to change laws.

Different distracted driving laws might help reduce the amount of distracted driving crashes. Right now, forty-eight states have some kind of distracted driving law. Being on your phone while driving is a primary stop in forty-one of those forty-eight states. A primary stop is a violation that law enforcement officers can stop you for. With a secondary violation, law enforcement officers cannot stop you solely for that violation. If a law enforcement officer stops someone for a primary violation, they can then address the secondary violation. In a study conducted examining the occurrence of fatal crashes from 2000 through 2010 in forty-eight states with and without primary enforced texting bans, it was found that there was a three percent reduction rate for all age groups involved in fatal motor vehicle accidents with primary enforced texting bans. It was also found that secondarily enforced bans were not associated with fatality reductions (Ferdinand). Making primary enforced texting bans consistent across all states in the U.S will help continue to lower these distracted driving stats. Besides education and change in laws, I can also take personal steps to help reduce motor vehicle fatalities.

Some personal steps I can take to prevent motor vehicle fatalities is to practice safe driving myself and speak up. When I am driving, I can set an example for others and constantly practice safe driving. I can obey traffic laws and don’t drive distracted or impaired. I can also speak up if I am in a car with a friend or family member if they aren’t driving safe. I can also encourage family, friends, and peers to take a drivers safety course. I can also promote these courses and safe driving through social media.

There are multiple steps that can be taken in order to prevent fatal motor vehicle accidents. We can increase awareness of distracted driving and high schools can encourage classes regarding this issue. Another step that can be taken is making primary enforced texting bans consistent across all states in the U.S. On a personal level, I can practice safe driving, set an example, and promote courses and safe driving. This problem will not be solved just by one single thing. It will be solved by the combined effort of school, community, and government. In future, hopefully more states, schools, and communities take more action to prevent fatal motor vehicle accidents.

CDC. “Global Road Safety.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 10 Jan. 2023, www.cdc.gov/injury/features/global-road-safety/index.html#:~:text=Crash%20injuries%20are%20estimated%20to,5–29%20years%20of%20age.

Ferdinand, Alva O et al. “Impact of texting laws on motor vehicular fatalities in the  United States.” American journal of public health vol. 104,8 (2014): 1370-7. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2014.301894

NHTSA. “NHTSA Estimates for 2022 Show Roadway Fatalities Remain Flat after Two Years of Dramatic Increases.” NHTSA, NHTSA, 20 Apr. 2023,www.nhtsa.gov/press-releases/traffic-crash-death-estimates-2022.