“Get Home Safe”

Driver
education is important in many, especially younger, communities
today. More than 90 people die in a car crash daily and over 32,850
die annually due to car crashes. Most of them are between the ages of
15 and 20. With proper driving education, the number of people who
die from car crashes can be drastically decreased. Drivers can know
the dos and donts of driving and educate themselves on driving safer
in a community where not only them; but the people around them, are
at risk. The methods that can be taken to reduce the number of
casualties from driving can depend on the area in which the drivers
live. One of which can be to increase the number of police monitoring
the roads. Another potential method would be providing more
punishments to those that are caught driving with some sort of
distraction such as a phone in their hands if they are texting. How
the death rate is reduced does not just have to be from law
enforcement or an authoritative figure. The technology we use every
day can also make some changes to their software. For instance, an
implemented feature that uses the camera on one’s phone to detect
rapid eye movement from the screen to the road and automatically
turns the phone of the screen off could prove extremely valuable.

I
have been in a car accident myself due to the carelessness of a
family member and their lack of spatial awareness. Due to road rage
and an argument that got to the driver’s head and caused them to pay
more attention to the passenger than the road, the car we were in got
t-boned. The doors on the right side of the car war jammed shut and
the passenger and I were both slightly concussed. Thankfully we both
recovered however that incident opened my mind to the many dangers
that face drivers and the importance that having proper driving
education can have when you are responsible for not only yours but
countless other people’s lives. The steps that I can take as a driver
and passenger to maintain safe driving among myself and friends
including minimizing distractions while driving as much as possible.
Whether that is lowering music down when it gets too loud or
reminding them or myself to stay focused if something seems off with
their driving or mine. This may also include removing phones if the
driver is potentially being distracted by it. We all want our friends
and family to return home safely when they leave somewhere, the least
we can do is help make sure they do when we are riding with them.