The Impact of Safe Driving

The Impact of Safe Driving, by Ashton Riker

Drivers Ed is important in reducing the number of driving related fatalities by educating new young drivers in the importance of vital safety knowledge and procedures that every driver should practice. Drivers all across the United States can reduce fatalities by wearing seatbelts, obeying laws on the road and not driving under the influence. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 25% of driving related deaths were directly caused by being under the influence of alcohol and 47% of driving fatality victims were not wearing seatbelts. Contrary to popular belief, both old and young drivers are susceptible to causing drunk driving incidents. According to studies, your risk of getting in a motor accident increases 7 times while driving with a BAC over 0.1. Obeying posted speed limits can reduce the likelihood of crashing into other vehicles or objects and reduce the severity of a crash. Seat belts have saved an estimated 14,955 lives and could have saved 2,549 people in accidents if they were wearing seatbelts. Seatbelts can protect drivers and passengers from hitting against the vehicle or being ejected from the vehicle in a crash which is in many cases fatal. In 2019, 90.7% of drivers used their seatbelt regularly. By practicing safe driving habits, you are not just ensuring the safety of yourself but the safety of others on the road and you are practicing good citizenship. Drivers have a responsibility to everyone else on the road and their community to ensure they don’t harm themselves or others with their driving. There was this one time in my life when I was 10 years old and returning from school and the driver took her eyes off the road to look at me for just a few seconds and we crashed the car into another car that was stopped ahead of us at 40mph. I bruised my face and broke my nose but the seatbelts had saved us from being ejected out of the car and onto the road. It was still rough that day, the police were called and I had to be put in an ambulance and sent to the hospital. That traumatic and possibly fatal event was caused by just a few seconds of distracted driving. About 1 in 4 vehicle crashes are caused by texting and driving, or 1.6 million crashes and 390,000 injuries a year according to the National Safety Council and according to the CDC 8 people are killed a day by texting and driving. All these people were family members, children, parents, and friends. Another driving safety issue is road rage. Road rage is when someone driving a vehicle drives dangerously because they are upset, it is important for people to know if they get very angry on the road they should pull over and calm down to ensure they don’t injure themselves or others. Driving in the United States of America can be more dangerous than fighting in a war, the NHTSA reports that more Americans die every year from driving then fighting in the wars in Iraq of Afghanistan. Drivers education and safety should be a nationwide issue and ensure that everybody knows just how big of a responsibility driving a vehicle can be.