The Importance of Safe and Educated Driving

Driver education is an important facet of society and a key factor for overall safety in a world where driving is an essential part of everyday life. The importance to consider the extent of overall driver education in correlation with the number of deaths as a result of driving is crucial due to the nature of being well educated in driver etiquette and understanding of responsibility and that being correlated with a lower amount of accidents the driver gets into, and the contrapositive of that. To simplify, the importance of educating drivers coincides with the importance of reducing casualties as a result of uneducated drivers and increasing safety on the road. Well-educated drivers are less likely to commit driving infractions and are less likely to make decisions and movements that are unexpected for drivers nearby while on the road. The level of driver education in society therefore leads to a common understanding and relatability of acknowledging the rules of the road in order to have to drive alongside a fellow-minded individual with the same acknowledgement of responsibility behind the wheel and driver safety. This reduces deaths as a result of out-of-place decisions and movements on the road.

A step that can be taken to reduce the number of deaths related to driving is increasing the penalty for repeated offenders and increasing the power of strict rules and regulations associated with, but not limited to, underage driving, driving without a permit/license, going over or unacceptably lower than the speed limit, and D.U.Is. In addition, making sure a driver is well-fit to drive coming out of a driver’s ed class or attempting to pass a license test through more applicable, therefore tougher, assessment of a driver’s ability to drive can reduce the amount of underlying negligence associated with the legalities of driving practices and decrease the amount of uneducated drivers on the road.

I do not have a personal anecdote related to irresponsible driving, but I have been told of driving accidents that have mostly occurred because of either party’s ignorance regarding how much attention they put on the road and their surroundings. Many of the accidents were a result of a driver not noticing the vehicle in front of them is stopped, either due to a red light or stop sign, and crashing into them from behind. These have not resulted in any deaths, but they have cost a considerable amount of money for both parties in medical and repair expenses, most paid by the driver who caused the accident.

A step that I can take to continue to drive safely and follow the rules of the road is to practice and build more experience on the road with my parents or a trusted adult so that I can learn and adapt to any details or questions that may arise from unusual circumstances. This can help polish regular driving skills and awareness while also learning the correct decision to make in any unusual predicaments I may find myself in. I know the importance of not texting or using my phone while driving so another step I make is to make sure to stop any conversation I have. A follow-up step to that to avoid texting is to clear up any questions I have about destinations, what I do or buy at them and how I get to them, with my parents, who usually are the ones that send me out to do grocery shopping and help me increase my overall experience with driving. Another step I take to make sure I will be driving safely is to make sure I am not feeling groggy or lazy before I get behind the wheel because I know that may end up in negligent driving or distracted driving. I remind myself and the people around me of this in order to stay safe on the road and reduce mental and physical distractions. I tell my friends and run them through where we are going prior to driving when we go out so that there is no confusion or quarrel of destinations while driving. I also make sure to remind my parents that I am more than available and able to drive for them on days that I know they are feeling exhausted from work or even slightly under the influence due to drinking at a party. I stay sober and clear-minded when it comes to driving so as to reduce the likelihood of an accident due to my own negligence occuring on the road.