To Pass or To Survive?

There
are very few times in my life where I could hear my heart pounding in
my chest. My road test was one of those times. As I sweated to turn
the corners gracefully, delicately tried to brake the car at the stop
sign like a professional chauffeur, and put my eyes on a
military-grade swivel, I felt the immense pressure of the moment.
Finally, when the car rolled to a stop for the last time, my proctor
said that I had passed and I could not stop smiling as I drove the
entire way home.

Reflecting
on that experience, I knew that my road test was the safest that I
had ever driven. I stopped cleanly at the white lines, always
signaled and had ample room for lane changes, and never drove above
the speed limit. However, after growing comfortable for a year and a
half after getting my license, I observed that these practices were,
little by little, falling into disrepair. I knew that the only change
that could be responsible for this consistent deterioration, that led
to some extremely close
calls on the road, was that I no longer the same pressure to drive
safely like I did on the road test. Thus, I knew that in order to
reduce the number of deaths related to driving, that, quite simply,
people needed to remind themselves of the pressure that we all once
felt, instead this time the pressure is not to pass, but to survive.
From that point forward, I reminded myself every time when I stepped
into the car of the risks that I was putting myself in the front of
and that reminder is all it took for me to keep my eyes on the road,
ensure the safety of my car, and protect any of my passengers.

The
importance of drivers ed in reducing the number of deaths as a
result of driving is that education provides us with the knowledge on
how to respond under this pressure. Without this foreknowledge, the
pressure to drive safe will make us petrified of the road, instead of
confident and capable. Drivers ed helps us to adapt to new
situations and respond appropriately to the pressures of driving.

There
have been numerous examples of my family members driving
irresponsibly, myself included. Whether it has been changing the
radio or glancing down at their phone for even a second causing them
to nearly hit the braking car in front of them or trying to merge
onto the freeway and not seeing the car in the neighboring lane,
there have been excessive close calls.

For
all of us to become safer on the road, I simply ask that when we turn
the keys in the ignition, that we take a few seconds to remind
ourselves of the risks that we put ourselves and our passengers in by
controlling the wheel and mastering that pressure to ensure safe
driving and a safer world for all.