Stay Educated, Stay Safe, and Stay Behind the Wheel

Stay Educated, Stay Safe, and Stay Behind the Wheel

By Isabella Radican

Education, in general, is not only important, but necessary in our lives, as it is a way for us to achieve knowledge, skills, beliefs, values, and moral habits that will carry with us throughout life. This same concept applies to driver education as well. During drivers ed, beginner drivers are initially taught the rules of the road, including road signs, traffic signals, right of way, basic vehicle safety and maintenance, strategies for emergency situations, how to operate a vehicle, the importance of safe driving, and more. Next, comes the time for young drivers to take those concepts and apply them behind the wheel. It is extremely important for young drivers to apply the information they learn during drivers ed, as it will, just like all other education, carry with them throughout life, and failure to follow it, can result in unimaginable consequences for the driver, the passengers, nearby drivers, and others. Some of the most common causes of death while driving include drunk, reckless, and distracted driving. During drivers ed, students are taught the importance of never stepping foot in a car if the driver is drunk, whether it is themselves or a friend/family member. Students are also taught that speeding way over the limit or excessive lane changing are forms of reckless driving and are not acceptable. In addition, drivers education instructors teach the importance of staying focused while driving and not allowing distractions such as texts, phone calls, makeup, food, or other desires get in the way of the main goal, arriving safety at the destination. Drivers education plays an extremely big role in reducing the number of deaths as a result of driving, and if it were not for this education, young drivers would not know right from wrong when it comes to staying safe on the roads.

There are numerous steps that can be taken to reduce the number of deaths related to driving. Like I just mentioned above, the most common causes of death while driving are from accidents caused by drunk, reckless, and distracted driving. One important step that can be taken, is to make sure you have fully gotten ready and prepared yourself before stepping in the car to drive; this means that you have already eaten, put on makeup, done your hair, and responded to every text, email, and phone call that you need to. Three seconds is all it takes for an accident to happen, and while you may think that looking away to take a bite of your breakfast is worth it, I promise you, it is not. A measure you can take to avoid reckless driving is to leave wherever you are coming from earlier than you need to take, in order to give yourself plenty of time to get to your destination. When drivers leave late, they tend to speed excessively so that they can make up time, however this is the exact thing not to do. There is no downside of arriving at your destination a few minutes early; it gives you time to relax and take a breath before continuing with your day. Another step that is so important to safe driving, is making sure you get enough sleep the night before getting behind the wheel. Sleepiness leads to slower reaction times, lapses in judgement, impaired vision, delays in processing information, and more. You would not want to be on the road with another driver who is sleep deprived, so why should it be any different when that driver is you? There are many steps your friends and you can take to avoid drunk driving. One of the easiest ways is to designate a driver in your friend group that will not drink the entire duration of the event. If everyone in the group drinks, there is always the option to call a ride to come pick you up; there are many companies out there that specialize in just this.

While I have been fortunate to have never been in a car accident, one of my neighbors was involved in a serious crash during her senior year of high school. She was actively being recruited by numerous Division 1 schools to play college soccer, however as a result of the accident and the serious concussion she suffered, she was unable to compete for a year and missed out on the ability to be recruited. She was driving by herself on a two-lane road, when a driver going the opposite direction, swerved into her lane and hit her going 70 miles per hour. Luckily, was able to react quickly, and jerked the steering wheel to her left, so that the other car hit the passenger side of her vehicle and not her. The driver who hit her suffered only minor injuries. While this crash luckily did not end in death or extreme injury, this could have all been avoided if the driver who hit her had not been snapchatting while driving.

The best thing you can do to be a better and safer driver is to put your phone and any other distracting items out of reach and sight. A great place to store your belongings is in the glovebox compartment. Always get plenty of sleep the night before and allow yourself more than enough time to safely get to your destination. It is equally important to help others become safer on the road. Whenever you see a friend or family member driving in a way that is dangerous to themselves, their passengers, and other cars, it is important to not sit by quietly and let it happen, but to use your voice and teach them right from wrong. Another way to teach others how to be safer on the road is to lead by example. Leading by example shows other drivers what is supposed to be done and allows them to realize that if you can do it, so can they!

Overall, stay educated, stay alert, and stay behind the wheel!