How to Save a Life: A Story of Driver’s Education

Though it has been over eight years since my first car accident, I remember the experience like it was yesterday. I was ten years old. After being cooped up in the house all day, I was excited to hear my aunt’s invitation to go out and run some errands with her. We visited several locations picking up items such as fruits, vegetables, and other items for the upcoming week. Finally, we had reached our last stop: the laundromat. We were finishing loading the car and backing out of our parking space when suddenly a speeding car struck us from the side. Unfortunately, I had not yet fastened my seatbelt, and the vehicle’s impact sent me flying back-first into the side door. I was in pain. After the accident, I told my mom about my discomfort, and she took me to the hospital. I was in the emergency room for hours until they eventually ran their X-Rays and various tests. Luckily the doctor confirmed that nothing was broken and sent me on my way with a prescription for painkillers, muscle relaxers, and physical therapy.

Although I was lucky enough to avoid any long-term/significant injury from this car accident, I later found out how fortunate I really was. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were an estimated 5.4 million crashes in 2021 alone. Of these, thirty thousand were deadly, ultimately killing thirty-three thousand and injuring 2.2 million people. Furthermore, according to the CDC, crash injuries are estimated to be the eighth leading cause of death globally for all age groups and the leading cause of death for children and young people 5–29 years of age.

Each death is not just a number but another life negatively affected or taken out of the world. Although it might be easy to initially blow these statistics off as simply numbers and commas, it is important to recognize each one of them as individual humans and consider the emotional, financial, and social burdens that might result from these car accidents. From a health standpoint, being in a car accident can be highly traumatizing for those involved. Even minor accidents can lead to short or long-term psychological distress, such as mood swings, sustained anxiety, trouble sleeping, and even post-traumatic stress disorder. This is before we factor in the incredibly traumatic grieving process others must go through when they lose someone dear to them due to a car accident. As an only child, I can only imagine my mother’s sadness if the car accident with my aunt had taken my life. From a financial perspective, car accidents can also be quite costly, especially for low-income communities such as the downtown Atlanta community where I grew up. After being involved in a car accident, expenses quickly begin to add up. Paying for medical bills, property damage, and car maintenance is terrible enough without considering the possible increase in insurance rates. Additionally, having a family’s main provider lose their primary mode of transportation can be devastating and another source of stress. Now the victim is not only worried about how to fix the car but also how to provide their family with their next meal. Lastly, these deaths stand to negatively affect someone’s community. Each death is another son that has to grow up without his father or a mother being separated from her daughter. Broken families lead to broken communities, and these car accident deaths could hurt society.

After giving context to the problem and establishing the wide-reaching consequences of car accidents, my mind shifts to thinking about how we as a society can fix it. There are three interventions that I suggest. At the core of these interventions is driver’s education. According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, young drivers who do not participate in a driver’s education course are 24% more likely to be involved in an injury or fatal accident. Therefore, I would focus most of my efforts on boosting, subsidizing, and incentivizing Driver’s Ed participation. If possible, I would make it so that a class teaching the basics of the road would be incorporated into high school curriculums across the nation because it is just that essential. This class would focus on teaching road rules, focused driving habits (i.e., warning against eating, phone use, or loud conversations), and defensive driving techniques. Next, I would reinforce the lessons learned in the classroom through public awareness campaigns reminding drivers of the deadly dangers and the legal consequences associated with practicing unsafe driving habits. This would include TV ads, billboards, and even street signs. Hopefully, this combination would lead to a knowledge increase and behavioral change that would lead to reduced accidents and deaths.

However, my last intervention is on a far more personal level. If we are to really cut down on car accidents, we must hold each other accountable. No matter how much education we invest in, campaigns we fund, or legislation we pass, it ultimately comes down to us calling out dangerous driving habits displayed by those we love and correcting them as soon as possible. Taking the responsibility to stop that family member from sending that text or convincing that drunk friend to take an Uber home is the only way we can truly decrease car accidents. I think back to my first accident. If only my aunt had double-checked if I had my seat belt on, I might not have had to go to the hospital that night.

Knowing what I know now, I aspire to be this voice and encourage others to use theirs so we can all work together to bring our loved ones home safely.