Driving for a Change

Driving
for a Change

By:
Ava Philbeck

Driver
education plays a crucial role in reducing the number of deaths that
result from accidents. Before someone can receive their license in
South Carolina, they have to go through an eight-hour program which
teaches the “dos and do nots” of driving. Along with
instructional driving information, stories of those who have lost
loved ones in car accidents are told. Watching these videos have an
emotional effect on the viewers, enhancing their learning experience.
Being a defensive driver is one thing that I wish was touched on in
my driving class. As a driver, you need to know what and who is
around you at all times so that if you need to move fast, you know
where to go.

I have been involved in two car accidents, both in which I was
driving. The first accident involved a car pulling out in front of me
causing me to hit the front of their car. In the second, I was
driving through a green light and was t-boned by a driver who ran a
red light and totaled my car. Thankfully in both accidents no one was
hurt but they left me emotional for the days following. Though I was
not responsible for either of these accidents, someone could have
been injured, or even killed, if I had been driving just a little
faster. Being in a car accident changed how I look at and drive on
the road. I am always focused on those around me because I never know
what they might do. The road is not the only place you need to be
worried about drivers, though. When I was fifteen, I was in Atlanta
to play in a volleyball tournament. My family and I decided to walk
around the city the first night we were there. As my sister and I
were walking across a lit cross walk, I was hit by a car that was
turning left in which I rolled up on the hood and fell back onto the
ground. As I was falling back off, my dad was able to catch my head
so the only injuries I had were a couple of bruises. The driver was
not paying attention to what was in front of her and was lucky she
was driving slowly. Being in a college town with lots of student
drivers and big crosswalks, I make sure to check my surrounds at all
times whenever I am driving or walking. I make sure to inform my
friends and people I meet of these things so that they will hopefully
be safe drivers as well.