Driving Safety

Driver’s education is valuable. It teaches young teens and adults the rules of the road. They get an understanding of what and what not to do. They go over possible situations that could happen to help prevent you from crashing or losing total control of the car, like hydroplaning or flat tires. One obvious thing they teach us is that you always pay attention to the road. Not paying attention allows distractions to be the cause of people’s deaths. Some distractions include your phone or anything that leads your eyes off the road. Driver’s education seems obvious, and it is, but they say things we do all the time can allow our minds to wander. As a result of helping people stay safe, the death rate on the road lowers.

If driver’s education were not a thing, more people would die from the lack of correct knowledge. Many people do not know all the road rules, and some do not do the right things. With the lack of educated drivers, more people are taught incorrectly about driving, making the roads unsafe. This leads to more deaths from driving. Driver’s education may be boring to many, but it is vital for everyone’s sake.

Other than driver’s education, people need to focus on the road. Thousands of deaths are caused by people texting or calling while driving. You may look away for one second, but that second can be precious. Any distraction that leads your eyes off the road is dangerous, even if you are looking at a map, like a GPS.

Additionally, be cautious about the weather. Many deaths happen from accidents in weather conditions. For example, in the case of hydroplaning, disaster may strike if you can not stop at a light with wet roads and hydroplanes across the intersection. The weather affects how cars function, and going 80 miles per hour down a highway while downpouring can increase the danger for you and the people around you.

I have never been in a car accident, but I have known people who have. I have had a friend get hit while walking across the street because the driver was not paying attention to the road but instead on their phone. My grandmother has been in a few. They were not life-threatening, but she did get hurt. I have seen my family drive irresponsibly before. Whether that is tailgating people or looking at their phones, they do not do it often, but it still puts people at risk. Fortunately, there are steps that they can take to become safer drivers and not put others at risk.

One step that could be taken to decrease the deaths of people from driving is if you are getting a call or text, do not pick up the phone. It is not that important to answer. Do not put people at risk. But if it is essential, put them on speaker so you can still have both hands on the wheel. Also, if someone else is in the car, have them answer the call or respond to the text. But really, leaving the phone alone is best because you are not distracted by thinking of other things. Also, if it seems unsafe to drive outside, do not risk driving in it. This would lead to putting others at risk, too. Be cautious of your surroundings. If you use a GPS, try placing it on your windshield or dashboard. This is best because you are not taking your eyes off the road for that long compared to if it is sitting on the console or the passenger seat. The less time your eyes are off the road, the better.

People can help each other by preventing deaths together. An example is if you feel uncertain if you should drive, then do not drive or have someone else drive you. For instance, if someone feels uneasy after playing a sport, then someone should drive them instead of driving themselves. This would get the uncertain person off the road and cause less danger for everyone. Also, if someone is not paying attention while driving, politely tell them, “Hey, could you pay attention to the road, please? I could send that text for you”. Helping people and reminding people can help prevent deaths on the road. Taking small steps at a time with everybody can significantly improve driving safety.

The unfortunate thing about driving is the deaths it causes. When you drive, you have people’s lives in your hands. There are dangerous drivers everywhere. But there are steps that we could take. We always need to pay attention to the road. Some people need reminders of the road rules. That is why driver’s education is so important when learning to drive. The small things matter; they can save someone’s life. It can even save yours. Step back and ask yourself, “Am I being a safe driver?”.