While many habits we learn are by simple direction that we understand, other require practice to master under the supervision of skilled, trained coaches. The basic operation of pushing one pedal to go and another to stop is easily told on a go-kart track, but on the roads with multiple hazards, expert training is required to master driving skills, not only for safety but for adherence to traffic laws. This is supported by a recent study that demonstrated that new drivers who completed driver education were over 4% less likely to crash, and had an astonishing 40% lower likelihood of receiving a traffic citation. 

I am fortunate to have had two outstanding driving instructors. One was a private instructor who was a former police officer, and his experience both driving and enforcing traffic laws was exceptionally effective. The other was my father, who taught me to drive my Barbie Jeep at age 3, then go-karts at age 6, and a real car on private land when I was 8. I would sit on his lap while we crawled around at very low speeds, and I came to love the feel of the motion, the control of the car, and the thought that with this conveyance, I could explore anywhere. 

Two key habits have proven to reduce traffic accidents and deaths: paying vigilant attention to one’s driving and surroundings, and obeying traffic laws. Several studies show that the safest drivers avoid distractions and anticipate what other drivers might do. There is an old adage that states, simply, “Speed kills.” Obeying speed limits seems simple but the likelihood of injury or death increases exponentially with speed. Further, reaction times to braking are far superior at lower speeds than higher speeds. If the reaction time from the sign of danger to touching the brakes is the same, the time to slow the car is nearly double at 70 mph than it is at 40 mph. So, paying attention is critical to reacting, and speed is critical to slowing – making the combination of attention and speed the most vital factors to improve safety. 

A (thankfully) ex-boyfriend was recently arrested for reckless driving. Thankfully he never drove like that with me in the car, but during his recent adventure, he could have killed someone by driving too fast in a residential area and on the wrong side of the road, all just to show off and race another car. If he had hurt someone, would their family say, “That’s okay – you had to prove a point and win a race?” Of course not. The risk of distracted and dangerous driving harm and kill hundreds of people every day. No amount of distraction or recklessness is worth the risk to others’ safety, to our own safety, or to our criminal records. 

With a love of cars instilled by my father, I was excited when he bought a classic car for us to share: a pink 1961 Cadillac. But before I could drive it, the first thing we did was add seat belts and dual-line braking. These are basic safety features of cars these days, but weren’t even required in 1961. He wouldn’t even let me drive it around the block until these were added, and then after that, he rode with me dozens of time to ensure that I could pilot our 19 foot car without the assistance of lane monitors and automatic braking. I had to prove that I could operate the car safely by myself – not with technological assistance – before he would let me drive it on my own. So part of my driver education was to pilot this barge with no modern features to facilitate safety. I learned to give wide berth, be constantly aware of other traffic, and to keep plenty of distance – to protect both me and our beloved pink Cadillac.

I adopted safe driving habits from both my formal driver’s education course, and my hypervigilant father. Both taught me to pay attention to other drivers, keep safe distances between me and others, to keep a reasonable speed below the posted limits, and if others are driving fast to keep to the right to not create “road rage” situations. My devices are hands-free or voice controlled so that I can keep my eyes on the road, and when I’m driving with friends I enlist them as additional eyes rather than chatmates. Hazards are everywhere – pedestrians stepping into roads, oncoming drivers wandering into my lane, rain reducing visibility… But constant attention to avoid the danger and avoiding excessive speed to be able to avoid harm from those dangers are critical skills I learned through driver’s education. While driving, I model these behaviors to my friends, and don’t overreact or engage with bad drivers to avoid road rage and keep them, others who use the roads, my fellow motorists, and especially, our pink Cadillac, safe.