The Final Destination

Presley Arnold

Driver’s Education

4 June 2021

The Final Destination

Driving is one of the most dangerous activities any American could take part in on any day of the year. There are six million car crashes every year in just the United States alone, 33, 244 of those accidents are fatal. Although it is extremely dangerous, millions of Americans get on the road every single day because it is a necessity and it is simply more efficient than other offered forms of transportation. It would be wonderful to switch to fully public transportation altogether, but it is rare in smaller cities, and the U.S. is far behind other nations on public transportation advancements. It is quite impossible to cease all driving in the United States, so it is more important to not look at the elimination of driving, but the safety precautions that could be taken to save lives. Sitting in a car is not a matter of if there will be danger or an accident, but when. It is of the utmost importance to myself and many other Americans to keep our families and friends safe. All accidents can be prevented, which is why it is my goal to become a safer driver but also try to educate others on road safety measures to protect lives. To save lives on the road, it is important to eliminate unnecessary cell phone use, implement personal driving rules, and keep road rage incidents to a minimum.

Cell phone use is fatal on the road and as there becomes more available technology to the public, it is a growing problem. According to the National Safety Council, “cell phone use while driving leads to 1.6 million crashes each year.” I fall victim to the addicting notifications on my phone and I have to admit that I have used my phone while driving. Changing music, responding to a text or a Snapchat notification, calling friends, and checking how many likes I received on my Instagram post all seem innocent and super instantaneous, we check the message quickly then look back up. But in a few seconds, your whole world can be turned around in a fatal car accident. For optimal safety and awareness, “Blind spots and mirrors should be checked every 3-5 seconds before and after changing lanes” (Top Driver), it takes about three to five seconds to read a text message. Many people want to blame this cell phone use on one age group or generation, but I have seen not only my seventeen year old friends text and drive but also my parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents text while driving. Cell phone use can only be described as an addiction, “the average US adult spends 3 hours and 43 minutes on their mobile devices”(Fatality Facts). I spend closer to five hours a day on my phone which is slightly embarrassing. Since multiple fatal accidents that affected teens in my community and school occured, I have completely eliminated my cell phone use while driving, even listening to music; I only listen to the radio. Accidents are heart-breaking and when they can be prevented, I do my part to make sure my family never has to mourn the loss of a child.

It is also important while driving to create a personalized set of rules for others and yourself while you are driving. I think that, especially as teens, it is super common for us to want to feel “cool” and impress others, which often involves avoiding simple safety measures. By not wearing a seatbelt, blaring loud music, and speeding, teens are far more likely to get into accidents, “An average of nine teens ages 16-19 (are) killed every day from motor vehicle injuries”(Teen Driver Car Accident Statistics). I have created my own set of rules that everyone in my car must follow when driving with me because I want to protect myself and the ones I love. In my car, the car does not move until every passenger has a seatbelt on, the music cannot exceed more than half of the maximum sound system volume, and my personal rule is to always abide by the speed limit and go even slower in inclimate weather conditions. I often realize how simple it is to stay safe while driving and it gets me thinking about how we could all lower accident rates by just changing common practices.

Defined as aggression towards other drivers or non-drivers to intimidate, road rage can cause thousands of accidents each year. Personally, I have felt anger towards other drivers and wanted to yell or flip them off or even “brake check” other drivers after they cut me off or drive slowly, but I resist. I resist because I am a one-hundred pound seventeen year old girl who would be the perfect target to follow home or hurt. I’m not very strong or intimidating and one of my biggest fears is to be followed home by an aggressive driver. It is also so immature to flip someone off or yell at someone who cannot even hear you over something as small as a minor driving inconvenience in which no one was hurt. In my opinion, it is a waste of time and it is so dangerous and is often petty and forgettable. The main way to educate others is to show through actions; I think I can educate other people on how to be better drivers by not exploding when others around me make mistakes and by showing forgiveness. Driving is scary and we all make mistakes and all deserve forgiveness, in the end we are all just trying to reach our final destination.

Driving is scary, but the main thing is to remain united as a people in our actions and our understanding. Many people forget that people are just people at the end of the day and my goal is to show forgiveness and also be principled in my actions to keep myself and others safe. I have to stay determined to stick to my rules and not let peer pressure steer me away from safety precautions. It is so important to avoid cell phone use, create rules for your car, and be kind to all drivers to prevent aggression. Driving is a matter of life or death, no one is immune to driving accidents, and by maintaining that mindset, I think thousands of lives could be saved. In the end, some people do not even get the chance to make it to their final destination, don’t let yourself be one of them.