The importance of awareness and safe driving

DMVedu.org
essay:
Have you ever had an experience of being in car accident / have seen
your friends/family members driving irresponsibly?

This topic hits home for me as I personally was involved in an
accident a few years back where a young driver caused a 5-car pileup
– and I was right in the middle of it. He was also following too
closely and slammed into the back of my car going full speed where I
was at a dead stop at a light. The impact hit so hard that my car fit
the car ahead of me, and that car hit the one in front of her.
The last car involved in this crash was the girlfriend the driver who
caused the accident, who may have also been driving under the
influence and ran into the back of his car. This accident involved a
total of five cars, two of which had to be towed as they were totaled
– mine and the young driver who hit me. This young driver was
responsible for the damage done to all five cars in this messy
pileup, and unfortunately, he did not have car insurance on either
vehicle. On the bright side of all this, no one was seriously injured
in this accident. However, the girlfriend did have their baby in the
back seat who was strapped in, thank goodness, but this entire mess
could have been avoided by drivers keeping a clear mind and paying
attention to the responsibility of getting behind the wheel.

This accident caused physical pain to everyone involved as well as
financial detriment in repairs and total losses. I personally lost my
car, lost money in a deductible that I was required to pay since the
at fault driver was uninsured, and I also had to receive medical
treatment for several months following due to whiplash and back pain.
My physical health has been affected ever since. Even through all
this, I think back to the young driver who decided to drive under the
influence and how much damage could have been avoided. Not only was
his own car deemed totaled, but he also lost his license, was
personally responsible for several thousand dollars’ worth of
damages out of his own pocket and put his own family’s physical and
financial safety in jeopardy. I can’t imagine any kind of substance
that would be worth that kind of risk. The long-term effects and
aftermath for this young driver will be felt for years after the
event, and that is an unfortunate lesson learned the hard way.

This unfortunate experience was a turning point on the way I look at
safe driving. There are so many potential distractions or just not
paying attention that could easily cause a serious situation. I do
believe however, that with practice and awareness, every driver who
gets behind the wheel to operate a two-thousand-pound machine can do
so with safety in mind and maintain high driving standards to pave
the way for safe roads.

Sarah
Olsen

Bachelor’s
in business management

Western
Governor’s University