Driver’s Education Courses: Why Are They Needed?

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, approximately one hundred people die every day due to fatal accidents in the United States alone. The main causes were “impaired driving, speeding, and failure to wear a seatbelt.” Most driver’s education courses focus on safety topics and why those crash causes are so terrible. However, more must be done if that number is ever to come down. I believe that driver education can reduce the number of deaths and injuries based on my personal experience and my own steps to ensure my safety as well as other drivers’ safety.

Driver’s education is crucial to reducing the number of roadway deaths. Without driver’s education, few people would understand the severity of roadway safety. Many states in America require at least a basic driver’s education course in order to graduate from high school and to get a driver’s license. However, some states require only a simple test. A test is not enough to prove that a driver understands not only the rules of the road, but also the important role that seat belts and airbags play in the event of a car accident. If improved and possibly continued education for drivers was implemented, more people would understand just how paramount road safety truly is. That being said, state education is not fully to blame.

Famous astronaut John Glenn said as he was entering the rocket that would give him the title of the first man to orbit the Earth that he realized that he was risking his life on a rocket that was “all built by the lowest bidder on a government contract.” This quote sheds light on business in general, including car manufacturing. Of course, vehicles have certain safety standards that must be met in order to be sold. However, if given the option between a basic vehicle safety feature versus a safer, but more expensive, safety feature, typically businesses will choose the least expensive option in order to increase profits. Unfortunately, it is the people on the road, and not the business, that ultimately pays the price. If businesses chose the safer option, or legislation was put into place for safer equipment, I believe that injuries and deaths on roadways will decrease.

Nearly everyone has been affected by a car accident, and I am no exception. When I was eight years old, my mother and I were driving on the interstate when another driver hit our vehicle, causing our car to slam into a guard rail and spin to the other side of the road. I had no injuries because I was strapped into a child’s booster seat. However, my mother was permanently disabled due to the accident. Because of that irresponsible driver, my mother ended up severely in debt with medical bills and could no longer work and provide for me. At nineteen, a girl I graduated high school with was heading home after a late shift, fell asleep at the wheel, and crashed and died. Her tale is a true accident, however had she thought about the dangers of driving while sleepy, she may have called a cab or a friend to bring her home. When I was twenty-three years old, my friend was speeding down a small road with some other teenagers when they wrecked into an 18-wheeler hauling timber. The other teenagers had a few scrapes and bruises, but my friend went to the hospital, where she later passed away. The passengers later admitted that while they were wearing seatbelts, she was not. Had she been more responsible, she may be alive today. Each of these instances are examples of irresponsible driving, which may have been mitigated by better or continued education.

Because of my past experience and various other tales I have been told, I do everything in my power to be a responsible driver. I make sure that I and any passengers buckle up every time I am in a vehicle, even if the trip is less than a mile. If I have a drink with dinner, I will not drive nor will I allow others to drive. I check every blind spot before turning or merging, and I would like to get a rear-view mirror that allows me to see all my blind spots. I admit that I have driven while tired. However, I make sure to have music playing to ensure I do not fall asleep. I never play on my phone while behind the wheel, even when stopped at traffic lights. These may be simple actions, but I know that not doing them places myself, my passengers, and other drivers at risk of death and injury.

Driver safety and education is seriously lacking in the United States. With time and commitment, drivers can educate themselves and become much safer drivers for both them and every other person on the road. Perhaps one day, the number of vehicle deaths in America will be zero.