Drivers Education

The importance of Driver’s Ed is so that any one person can be prepared for all kinds of situations that can happen on the road. Many get comfortable with their own driving skills over time that they forget to realize that others may not be as careful as them or they risk others’ lives by driving in situations that should not be done. Because of this it is not only important for one person to get comfortable behind the wheel for themselves, but to anticipate anything that could happen while out on the road. If everyone can do their part in this, I predict that there would be less deaths related to driving.

To reduce the amount of deaths in driving would require people to realize that while yes they may have gotten experience driving, but that doesn’t mean they are prepared for every driving situation. Keeping people aware that there are so many unforeseen events that happen to even the best of drivers will help them to ensure that they are as prepared as they can be for when those situations arise. Drivers Ed is there for a reason. One is to get students comfortable on the road and in a vehicle learning the rules of the road, but also to show them that they need to be prepared for any type of situation that may arise. It is up to the instructors to ensure that students have learned what is necessary so they can be prepared to drive without an instructor. Beyond this both the written and driven tests need to be updated consistently with the world as a check to ensure that they have the knowledge and basic skills to be on their own.

My experiences seem extreme as there are more than one, but they give good examples of how anything can happen. My first one was with my mom. A college student was looking at the wrong green light and ended up rear-ending us. Another with my dad: someone pulled out in front of him who had the red which resulted in him slamming on the brakes yet still hitting the car who didn’t have the time nor space to speed up. My own experiences include being rear-ending in a similar situation to my moms mentioned above, and another where I actually flipped a fire truck. I have also had an accident where I was in traffic on a freeway and accidentally rolled into the car in front of me as I was looking in my rearview for an opportunity to change lanes. I believe that with the fire truck I did not have the driving experience yet to take on the hill that I took on. It was the first time I was getting to drive to a small brush fire, but it included going up a mountain that was different from the straight road I had learned to drive the truck on. I went around a kickback curve (where you basically turn around) that was uphill and was extremely close to the edge. When I got around the curve there was a car in the other lane that kept me close to the edge. When I got to a part that was slightly curved I didn’t get over enough and lost my front right tire to the edge of the road. When the water in the truck shifted with this drop, it pulled the truck over the edge to flip before coming to rest down the hill. I was extremely lucky to walk away from a crash like that.

From working with the volunteer fire department, I saw many accidents and heard about even more. The most common occurrences seemed to be speeding and distracted driving. People of all ages have gotten into accidents where they may have not worn a seatbelt or lost control of their vehicle. So many get comfortable behind the wheel that the seconds it takes to check their phone feel invincible so they do it again and for longer amounts of time. It seems as if where many drive everyday it’s subconscious, but there are so many situations to look out for. Some of those include situations where something goes wrong with the car, there’s a hazard in the road, weather related issues, or another driver creating a dangerous situation. Driving gets to be “easy” so some will take risks like driving while tired or thinking that they can make it and drive while impaired because so and so did it or just plain being overconfident that it won’t affect them. By always remembering to be aware of what is going on around you, you create an environment that is safe for other drivers, but also could save your life one day.