The Driver Dance

The
Driver Dance

In
a sense, driving is like a dance. It requires complete focus,
concentration and trust in your roadside partners. The dance is
intricate―we constantly look both ways before changing lanes on the
highway, we stop at the stop sign even when the roads seem empty, and
we do it all in the hopes of feeling safe while driving a vehicle at
thirty to fifty miles per hour. Driving has always been scary for me;
in fact, when my mother was just acclimating to the bustling life of
urban New Jersey, she had got into an accident with a
sixteen-wheeler. The truck had rear-ended her, a hair-breath away
from t-boning her on the side. My mother had sat in her seat,
shocked, as the mouth of the truck fumed a few inches behind her.
When my mother had told my father that a commercial truck had tore
through his car, barely missing her, he was overcome with relief.
Even now, my mother can not ride on the highway alone.

That
was a moment when the dance went wrong.

I
am lucky to have both my parents beside me, when close to 3,700 fatal
car accidents occur every day (ASIRT). However, an important aspect
to my mother’s accident was that it could have been completely
avoidable. The importance of Drivers ed is abundant in a
time when high-school students are eager to get onto the road in an
attempt at liberation. At such an invincible time in your life,
driver knowledge seems silly. They simply say, “Texting seems
possible, as long as you’re discreet and careful about it. Speeding
doesn’t seem like a big deal, as long as a police car isn’t
coming around. The stop signs can’t tell you what to do, the roads
are empty, who’s going to notice?”

What
many don’t realize is that one mistake is all it takes.

In
order to flatten the curve, we need educated drivers. We need focused
drivers; drivers who understand the dangers of texting while driving,
drivers who understand that a car can hold parents, children, family,
and friends. Most of all, through extensive and immersive Driver’s
Education, students can become accustomed to their state laws, so
that they are aware of their surroundings the moment they get on the
road. Through education we learn the laws which govern us while we
drive, to look both ways at a stop sign, to indicate when switching
lanes, to check our blindspots on busy roads, to brake legally away
from a school bus, and to always
wear
a seatbelt. Knowledge can save a life. So next time you put on your
dancing shoes, be sure to respect your partners by following the
rules of the road.