Addressing the Symptom, Addressing the Cause

There are many things associated by default with American youth—blind rebellion against authority, an almost religious devotion to mindless scrolling, and, perhaps most notably, the belief that the average American spontaneously combusts at twenty-five. Another unfortunate, yet undeniable, trend is the teenage proclivity for unsafe driving. The causes are many. America’s geography and mid-20th century infrastructure cemented the car as a necessity, but beyond that, the freedom-centric mindset of the American people made driving a rite of passage. In generations past, the easiest way to escape the grip of authority was to hop in a car and tear down highways stretching from the countryside to the heart of the city. Tragically, that same spirit—the desire for independence, speed, and thrill—has turned countless vehicles into premature coffins. Underage drinking, peer distractions, and a reckless urge to test limits have made car accidents the leading cause of teenage deaths. The solution, however imperfect in its current form, is driver’s education. Like all matters of personal liberty, the desire to drive must be tempered by wisdom, and a strong foundation in proper driving instruction is the surest way to save lives.

I’m relatively young, so I remember driving training very well, and rest assured, there is no doubt that the answer to reducing deaths from driving starts during the period of driver’s training. If good driving habits are developed early, drivers are far more likely to maintain them for life. This is a personal anecdote, but my friends haven’t changed how they drive since Junior year. Luckily, most of my friends drive safely, but the occasional reckless cruiser has no intention of changing—it’s just how he drives. So, this young period is essential for making sure that driving-related deaths are kept to a minimum, and frankly, drivers’ training must improve in structure and substance for it to become any more than a formality. Before this is discussed, I would like to reiterate that a lot of how people drive will always be down to their natural disposition, especially genetic risk propensity which training will likely only marginally improve. Driving habits are as much about training as they are about personal disposition. My dad is a militant enforcer of road safety, my mom gets so absorbed in Scripture that I have to remind her to hit the gas, and I—well, I once launched a mailbox into a cornfield. If you met us, you’d understand. The reality is that training won’t override personality, but it can at least mitigate the worst instincts. Again, so much of it is down to disposition, and I’m certain if you met my parents and me, you would immediately intuit my accuracy.

Anyway, most people know the personal steps to make sure they drive safely. First, address distractions. The most invasive distraction is going to be your phone, so put on your music then put it away somewhere or just turn off your phone and drive in silence, maybe listen to the radio. I’m not one to judge, just keep it away from you while you’re behind the wheel. Addressing any other distractions as well, these include pets, food, drinks, or anything to lead you to divert your attention. That’s obvious enough. Second, just remember the rules of the road, even if you don’t remember much about your driver’s safety, do what you can. That leads to the final item, engaging in basic road courtesy should cover any deficit in driver’s training you have. There are people on the road who have the same places to be in as you, so don’t drive at their expense no matter how important it is for you to get where you’re going. Everything I’ve said is so obvious it hurts, but the difficulty comes in education and frankly, I must remind myself of these things sometimes as we all should.

Now that the personal ground is covered, the structure of driver’s training must be revisited. In my patently non-expert opinion, the entire infrastructure of American inauguration onto the road must be changed. This is not accusing the people behind it of being incompetent, my bitterness is directed at the DMV (or BMV if you’re a proud resident of the state of Indiana as I am) and the intense inefficiencies that it has always been known for. Another personal anecdote if I may. I remember very little from Freshman year, but I do distinctly remember classmates putting on their driver’s training videos, letting them play at 2-times speed, looking up the answers to the question, and then moving on. Do this for a painfully long time, spread out over weeks, and you’re done with the “class” portion. I don’t need to point out that the same issues that apply to online schools are more obvious in this case. It’s debatable if students ever learn the material at all, but if they do, they likely forget it quickly. Of course, eventually after a period of practical driving experience and this faux education, you go into the DMV, wait 2 hours, and then sit down at a tablet and take a written driving exam that I finished in about three minutes (this is hyperbole, but I do so to highlight the absurdity of the process). Can anyone honestly say that there would be a significant difference between how they drive now with the driver’s education in its current incarnation and a theoretical world where they had exclusively hands-on experience with instructors and parents? I think the answer is an affirmative “no”.

I am one for solutions, not merely complaining. So, I’ll suggest what I would change about driver’s education to hopefully save more lives. Again, I am very far from being an expert. A necessary first step is increasing hands-on driving experience, especially in high-stress environments like highways and city streets. While the student is driving, the instructor asks driving-related questions. The point of this would be to simulate driving under stress and handling complex issues without diverting attention from the road. Like it or not, teenagers are going to distract themselves while driving, at least we can make sure it doesn’t kill them. The other would be to get rid of the online courses, they are at best an annoyance that goes on too long. Block out an hour or so for at most a month for the student to go to the DMV and attend an in-person class. The information will stick better, and the pain will be over faster, it really is as simple as that. The only other thing I could think of would be improving the DMV, but that’s never going to happen, at least in my lifetime.

Will we ever get rid of reckless driving as long as the current automotive system exists? No. Will driver’s training ever be the perfect cultivator of highway virtue for everyone who passes through it? Absolutely not. Will the DMV ever function to a level parallel with a private enterprise? Don’t hold your breath. The truth is, none of that is necessary. What is necessary is to make sure that more people get home to their families and do not die behind the wheel due to irresponsible driving. For that reason, personal decisions must be made to be a more conscious driver, yes, but there must be an honest effort to turn getting a driver’s permit into more than a bureaucratic hurdle. Driving is a privilege, and like any privilege, only the worthy have a claim to it, and the unprepared have none. In order to create safer roads, we need higher-quality drivers. To make more high-quality drivers, we need to start with how they’re taught.