Promoting Safe Driving

Driver education is extremely important. There are so many irresponsible and unsafe drivers out there in the world. Many drivers choose that lifestyle with the help of harmful objects. If there was one thing I’ve learned from the many driver education courses I’ve taken, my parents, and the many videos on the internet, is how important it is to drive safely and limit distractions and dangers on the road. So many lives have been lost due to harmful driving and my heart hurts for every single one of them. As a teen, I see unsafe driving on a daily basis just from leaving the school parking lot to driving on the interstate. I can guarantee that more than half of teens around my age believe that they have never driven unsafely or driven while being distracted. Which is far from correct. Many people do both of those things every single day. Driving unsafely can include the use of technology, drugs, and alcohol, or even just simple things like eating.

I think many steps can be taken to reduce the number of lives lost while driving. Including getting rid of the many distractions that come with driving. In this day and age, technology is so dangerous when paired with driving. Technology, like phones, leads to eyes being taken off the road. Just something as little as changing the song or answering a phone call can lead to accidents that can lead to many injuries or even death. Although I have never been in a car accident or been in the car during one, I have lots of family and friends who have. I also have many friends who use their phones when driving. I’m such a huge advocate for safe driving. If they will not put it down, I will always insist on doing it for them. I would much rather send a text to them instead of ending up in danger because they were texting. No matter how annoying it is, I think it’s so important that people tell their friends no or tell them it can wait until we get to our destination. People truly don’t know how quickly things can change on the road.

Although it’s kind of silly, I always imagine other cars as pedestrians. Everyone learned in driver’s education or from somewhere before they started driving that pedestrians have the right away. They are not protected like we are in our cars, so therefore, we should always drive very carefully when we’re around them or anywhere near them. So, I like to think that I’m driving with pedestrians so I need to be very careful when approaching cars, driving next to cars, or really coming in contact with cars at all. I also use the driving focus feature on my iPhones. Although not all people have iPhones, I know many do. When my iPhone feels my car start to move, it will turn on. When this feature turns on, it locks your phone on the lock screen, not allowing you to do anything on your phone. It still permits you to receive notifications, tracking apps to work, and music to play, but doesn’t allow you to mess with them. It then turns off once the car has completely stopped moving for a few minutes. I really enjoy this feature because I think it is really important to help promote safe and distraction-free driving.

I have personally lost a close family member in a car accident due to unsafe driving. It happened in September of 2021. He got involved in a major accident while he was riding his motorcycle in Colorado. He suffered so many injuries that he eventually passed away soon after. The accident caused a big break in my family and caused an even bigger break in my heart. It was truly one of the most devastating things that has ever happened to me. I still can’t fully grasp the fact that my fun-loving, adventure-seeking, and just all-around wonderful person was lost. So, when I hear of these terrible accidents that happen on the road due to distracted driving and unsafe driving it makes my heart hurt so much for the thousands of families that are affected and the people involved.

Advocating for safe driving has always been high on my list. It blows my mind to think about how little people talk about this subject and the effects that come with it. I will forever remember the many individuals lost in accidents due to unsafe driving.