Driver’s Be Aware

Driver’s Education is important because if everyone learns the rules of the road and how to react in certain situations then there is a smaller chance of death for the person driving and everyone else around them. The three leading causes of fatal accidents while driving is distracted driving, speeding, and driving while under the influence. Three steps that could help to reduce the number of deaths from driving are:

One, pay better attention to your driving and to the area around you. Most of the fatal deaths are due to distracted driving. Something that my dad told me is that if something is distracting you, even if it is only for a second, get rid of it. If it is the music just switch the channel or turn it off completely. If it is a certain person in the car, what my dad suggested is to pull over and wait until they have finished being annoying or distracting, then you can continue your merry way. Always make sure that everyone in the car is wearing a seat belt. This is something that has been preached to us since we were little toddlers, so why fight, just click it so we can get going.

Two, Slow it down! It does not matter if you are late for an important meeting or for school, if you had planned better than you would not be late. On that note, drive to the conditions. If there is black ice on the highway, keep it under 50 mph. If it is pouring so hard you cannot see the car in front of you, pull over. Trust me, it is not worth it to keep going. Your life is more important than getting to wherever you are going.

Three, do not drive under the influence of drugs, alcohol, or any other mind-altering chemical. Again, this has been repeated since we were in diapers, so why is it one of the major reasons that people die? You would think that after hearing it so many times it would not even be a consideration.

I have never been in the car when any of my family members got into an accident or were not being careful, but I have heard many stories from over the course of my childhood about some of their accidents and the accidents of their friends. My mom was about seven years old when her mom and twin brother were in an accident. It was in the middle of the night and a farmer’s pasture had a hole in the fence. Their horse had escaped and was standing in the middle of the highway. My grandma hit the brakes when she saw it, but it was too late. She hit it on the head and since my mom and uncle did not have their seat belts on, they went through the windshield. Luckily, they were fine, but that is one of the reasons why my family is so careful when driving. Another reason is that my dad had a similar accident when he was first able to drive. He had not been experienced in driving on slushy roads so when he lost control, he rolled my grandfather’s truck a few times before landing upright, although stuck in a ditch, in the middle of nowhere on a gravel road. My dad and his younger sister had been wearing seat belts at the time, so they came out of the accident with bumps and bruises but no permanent damage. So, they hiked for a few miles until they came to a farmhouse, where they called for my grandfather’s help. My cousin was in an accident where he had lost control on a highway, in between a large city and his small hometown, and ended up in the ditch. The blizzard was so bad that you could see a car in the ditch at almost every other mile. He ended up waiting for almost an hour before my uncle and dad could get to him, but he still made it to Thanksgiving dinner, so my Aunty was not to upset with him.

Some steps that I can take to become a better driver are to actively watch for mistakes and patterns in my regular driving, and then adjust accordingly. Be alert and careful. Let other people know where I am going and how long it will take me to get there, so they can call me and make sure I am all right. Avoid driving after dark and by looking up the road conditions and weather if I am traveling.