Driver
education is essential in giving new drivers sufficient knowledge
about the rules of the road and how to be responsible with their
privilege. Teenagers can be extremely eager to get on the road and
have the freedom to go wherever they please, which can lead them to
get excited and reckless on the road. Drivers ed gives them the
resources they need so that they will know the dangers of driving
without regarding the laws of the road and the importance of not only
being aware of how they drive, but how other people are driving
around them. Knowing how to make a proper stop, follow speed limits,
use turn signals, yield to traffic and pedestrians, and every rule in
between is crucial information for new drivers to have in order to
ensure their own safety and the safety of others on the road.

With
the growing influence of smart phones and social media, there are
more distraction than ever for drivers. Steps that can be taken is
making features in cars that automatically connect to phones in it
and disable the driver from being able to access social media and
texting. Having more hands-free features that allow drivers to use
their gps or send messages without having to use their phone would
also reduce distractions that could lead to fatal accidents on the
road, considering distracted driving is the number cause of traffic
accidents.


While
carpooling with my peers, I have seen many of them driving
irresponsibly. It can be things such as checking their phone while
driving on a straight road or rolling a stop sign that can lead to us
almost getting into a collision with oncoming traffic. I have
personally never been in a major car accident, but in high school I
was close friends with a boy named Josh whose family got into a
tragic accident which ended up in him losing his two younger
siblings. The collision was caused by someone speeding down a busy
street past a stop sign. He survived but caused 4 innocent people to
lose their lives. No one wants to be the cause of an innocent
person’s life, and had he been driving responsibly, those kids
would have had the chance at life that they deserved. No text
message, no post, no meaningless risk, is worth a human life.

Steps
I can take to ensure that I am a safe driver is putting my phone away
when I get in the car and, when I carpool, making sure that my
friends are doing the same thing and helping them avoid other
distractions by changing radio stations for them or offering them
directions when they need it. I also should pay attention to speed
limits and make sure I review the law whenever I am unsure about it.