A Collective Decision

2020 Drivers Education Essay Contest Submission

Completing driver’s education is a milestone for all prospective drivers, teenagers and adults alike, throughout the country. I remember signing up for my driver’s ed course as soon as I turned fifteen and a half. I read through descriptions of how to read street signs, navigate traffic circles, and understand the anatomy of a car. Driver’s education teaches the very basics of driving, the fundamentals, the “how to’s.” When driving, we as a collective, need to abide by a certain set of rules and principles to keep everyone on the road safe. Though it may not be a surgeon operating on a patient, a firefighter extinguishing a fire, or a paramedic performing CPR every time an individual decides to sit behind the wheel they are holding another person’s life in their hands.

It is impossible to understate the importance of keeping hands on the wheel, eyes scanning, and attention on the road enough, especially to new drivers. There also needs to be consequences for distracted driving, even minor offenses, as it may perhaps be just what that individual needed to prevent a disastrous accident from occurring. This does not even have to come from law enforcement, but parents, friends, and anyone else that may be in the car. We all need to keep one another accountable, because if we all follow the rules of the road, there will be a decrease in motor vehicle-related accidents and deaths. Additionally, it would be helpful to be able to see the damage that a simple text or distraction can cause. The addition of real life stories, images, and videos should be included in driver’s ed courses. The statistics that are blurted out have no meaning; they lack impact and are easy to ignore. Hopefully, more real-life accounts of car accidents will make people see that they can crumple just as easily as a pliable piece of aluminum. Lastly, the ability to switch on a driving mode on smartphones, in which a ‘do not disturb’ is activated and emergency calls are automatically directed through the speakers of the car, may also be helpful to reduce distracted driving collisions.

Thankfully, I have not been in a car accident, and I intend to keep it that way. I recognize the responsibility that comes with operating a vehicle weighing over 3500 lbs. I value my life and the lives of those around me, and answering a text or a call is simply not worth my livelihood. However, I have been in the car with an unsafe driver. This individual is one of those people who is expected to always be by her phone and answer any texts/calls that come through. It’s hard to speak up in situations when she answers a text or is holding her phone. Though I have not said anything yet, I recognize what I should not do in my own driving. When I am in the car with her, I become hyper-aware as I make sure to scan and check blind spots. Learning from these experiences as a passenger has helped me become a better driver.

Overall, driver’s education needs to continue to reinforce the importance of safe, undistracted driving. Additionally, we need to ensure that everyone who is on the road has had access to a reputable, informative driver’s education program in which, upon completion, they feel like they have the knowledge needed to safely handle a car. Practice is also key. We need to be willing to have an open mindset and accept the critiques of more experienced, safe drivers. In the end, everyone on the road is going from a point A to a point B. Our collective job is to make sure that everyone gets there safely, which, when working together and paying attention, is certainly an achievable task.