Terrifyingly True Consequences of Driving Distracted

Being a teenager can be very confusing and challenging, especially in one’s last year of high school. Personally, realizing how close I am to being an adult is both scary and exciting. I’ve noticed the small, gradual changes in my life that are bringing me closer to being a responsible and independent adult. My parents aren’t as strict as they were a few years ago because I’ve become more trustworthy as I’ve grown up. They know that I care about my schoolwork and grades, being on-time, being a good friend and making smart decisions about my health and wellbeing. I am a very different person than I was just two years ago: my fifteen year-old life revolved around an eating disorder (and then a tough recovery), finding a boyfriend and overcoming my social anxiety. I can happily say that my priorities have shifted and I’m no longer as confused and stressed over trivial things. As a high-school senior, I’m content with the person I am inside and out, I know that the few close friends I have love me more than all the cliques I tried so desperately to be accepted by, and I focus most of my attention on preparing for the future in some way or another.

I’ve reached many of the milestones that bring me closer to adulthood. I’ve kept a part-time job for over a year. I’ve applied to universities and managed the disappointment of rejection as well as the excitement of acceptance. One of the most important milestones I’ve met, however, was receiving my driver’s license.

While most teenagers strive to get their licenses as soon as they turn sixteen, I had my learner’s permit a while into being seventeen. I was embarrassed to not be able to drive myself, which made me even more ecstatic when I became legally allowed to. Now, I can drive myself to school and work, and see my friends without feeling like I’m burdening my parents with trips all around town. But as happy as I am to be able to drive, I am equally as afraid of the consequences. The truth is, approximately 180,000 teenagers get into car crashes in the United States each year. Over 2,000 of those crashes are fatal. On top of that, about 45% of teen drivers admit to having texted while driving. More terrifyingly, 7% of fatal crashes caused by distracted driving involve teenagers, and intoxication is not the main issue: texting is. Many teenagers feel overly confident in their abilities behind the wheel and take unnecessary risks because they think it’s cool or impressive or simply not dangerous. Distracted driving is an issue in all age groups, but it’s especially dangerous for new drivers who lack experience and certain critical thinking skills. It is easy to make a simple mistake like forgetting to signal for a turn or turn on one’s headlights at night, but many people my age don’t realize the serious consequences of a crash. There are the obvious issues, such as losing one’s car and having to pay for damages, but more complications can arise. By driving distracted, a person opens up a Pandora’s Box of horrific possibilities, including my personal worst fear: manslaughter.

I cannot imagine the guilt I would carry for the rest of my life if my poor decisions or bad habits caused someone else to lose their life. It happens much more frequently than I want to believe, and in 2022 alone over 3,000 people lost their lives because of being distracted behind the wheel or at the hands of someone who was. I wish teenagers would all recognize the long-term damages of texting while driving. While it may seem so simple and manageable, taking one’s attention away from the road is deadly. I make sure that I am completely alert when I’m driving, not because I’m afraid of getting into a fatal crash but because I’m afraid one wrong move could turn me into a murderer.

I remember last January, my mom got in a car crash. She was on her way to pick me up from school and drive me to my part-time job at Chick-fil-A. It didn’t happen at a busy intersection, or the highway, which was to be expected as I live next to one of the most dangerous stretches of the I-35. No, my mother was rear-ended in the turning lane leading into my school’s driveway, where the speed limit was 25 miles per hour. A car slammed into her bumper, sending her skidding into the side of a second car traveling in the opposite direction. Fortunately, all three individuals involved in the accident were unharmed, but my mother’s car was completely totaled. The driver who caused her devastating crash was intoxicated at three o’clock in the afternoon, in a school zone. I believe there is no excuse for that level of recklessness.

Even when sober, driving distracted is extremely dangerous. Checking my phone and taking my eyes off the road could kill someone, and I would have to live with that terrible regret forever. Texting and driving kills. Distracted driving kills. So to the 45% of teen drivers who have admitted to their bad habits, I ask: do you want to be a killer?