The Roadmap to Safer Driving

If you knew that you could save a life, just by taking one class, would you do it? What if that life was someone that you know? I have hope for a world in which safety & driving a vehicle don’t have to be mutually exclusive. I want to live in a world where my last words to the guests leaving my house aren’t “Be safe driving home” but instead are “I know you’ll be safe driving home”. Drivers’ education courses along with graduated licensing programs have shown that by participating, it can significantly reduce the number of crashes, convictions, and fatalities in drivers. Discussing how this can benefit the drivers of today and of the future can be the turning point in making driving safer for everyone.

Everyone I know has either been in a car crash themselves or knows someone who has been in a car crash. Personally, I am in both categories. In high school, one of my best friends ended up in a car crash that was almost fatal. She was not completely educated on safe driving, was speeding, and drove without a seatbelt. These things resulted in her crashing and being ejected from her vehicle through the windshield. My friends and I got the call that she was being lifted into a helicopter and taken to a critical care hospital, hours away, and we immediately drove to see her. She was placed in a coma to give her body time to heal and we were only given a few short minutes to see her. Thankfully, she survived however, she has lasting effects from the accident. The irresponsibility in her driving resulted in her nearly losing her life, which made us all begin to really think about how we can be safer on the road. AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has done research that indicates that by taking driver’s education, we can decrease the number of accidents by 4.3%. It has shown those who complete the course score higher on their driving exams and show better long-term driving knowledge. After seeing the aftermath of a car crash like my friends’, I think making it mandatory for teens to complete either a driver’s education course or a graduated licensing program would be a practical solution to educating drivers. This has been proven to create safer and more knowledgeable drivers on the road.

Recently, I have gotten into my own car accident. In August, I got hit by a driver who ran the red light. I had passengers in the car who acquired injuries from the accident as well as myself. I ended up with a rib fracture which took a few months to completely heal due to my vitamin D deficiency. My car was totaled but, we were lucky to not sustain major injuries however, my physical therapist said, I will have issues with this for the rest of my life. There are safety protocols we should have put on every car to ensure that if there is an accident, it is minor. Tesla has a breaking feature called the “Automatic Emergency Braking” which brakes automatically if you get too close to a vehicle, brake too hard, or turn the wheel too sharply. This is a revolutionary invention which has prevented many accidents from even happening. I believe having this on every vehicle could change driving for everyone.

Overall, there are lots of steps all drivers can take to keep the road safe for everyone. The common ones we know are buckling up, not speeding, putting your phone away, and keeping all distractions to a minimum. There are a few ways to go above and beyond which can include taking a driver’s education class, keep a 3-second following distance from the person in front of you, always being considerate of other drivers on the road, & finally, not relying on other drivers. Something I always suggest is reviewing the driving laws periodically regardless of how long you’ve had your license. This will ensure that you’re not only staying on top of the newest driving laws but, ensuring that you remember and correctly follow the road rules.

Regardless if you’ve been in a car crash or you know someone who has been in a car crash, we all know the intense feeling of fear of a car crash. We all as a collective need to put more practices in place to ensure driving is safer for everyone. As car crashes have been in the top ten contenders for the most deaths every single year, changes need to be made to ensure this form of transportation is sustainable. I know that I am working to improve my driving habits and you should too.