An Epidemic

Magdalena
Moranda

Driver
Education Initiative Essay Contest

Due:
1 August 2019

An
Epidemic

Driving,
to many it’s just simply an everyday task, what gets them from
point “A” to point “B”, it’s just another part of life.
Everyone thinks they’re a good driver, that nothing can distract
them, they claim to always have their eyes on the road and on top of
that they’re amazing multitaskers of course. But, did you know that
in the United States alone, thirty-four thousand people die as a
result of driving every single year? How can we stay safe while
driving and reduce this massive number? The answer is, like for many
other things, education. Awareness and easy, doable safe-driving tips
are key to protect ourselves and the ones we love.

Distracted
driving is one of the leading causes of driving deaths. There are
easy ways to prevent such atrocities, though. One very easy and
simple way would be to not use a phone while driving. If you’re
anything like my mom then you believe that talking on the phone while
driving is way safer than texting and so should just be legal.
Obviously no distraction is safe or “basically okay” but, most
smartphones today have some kind of function or an app you can
download that will basically turn off your phone for you so you don’t
receive any notifications, therefore no temptation. I do this with my
phone when I am driving and I may also do it to my mom’s phone when
she’s not paying attention (shhh…). Another popular distraction,
probably especially for young drivers, is music. Taking your eyes off
the road for any amount of time is extremely dangerous, even if
you’re just skipping a song or changing the station. To avoid this
have a playlist ready ahead of time or if you’re driving with
someone else have them be in charge of the music while simply focus
on driving. There are plenty of things that could distract anyone,
sometimes you might even just be distracted by your own thoughts. For
example, two years ago my mom rear-ended a state trooper, when asked
why she did it she claimed she didn’t know why and couldn’t
remember what happened beforehand. Now, if you ask me I’ve seen how
close she gets behind cars at stoplights but, she claims she was just
distracted. If we just take the time to get to know ourselves, know
when we’re good to drive, and know what to do when we get
distracted, I think we can all become better, more responsible
drivers and help to reduce the collosal driving death tolls. There
are so many more possible driving distractions out there, I only gave
you tips for two of the most common and my own biggest temptations.
But, if you really want to be the best, safest driver you can
possibly be, find ways to remove your own distractions while driving.

Driver’s
education programs are a simple way to reduce driver deaths,
especially for teenagers. An AAA Foundation study found that those
who go through drivers ed programs are safer drivers.
Teenagers that go through proper drivers ed training receive
fewer convictions and are involved in fewer car crashes. The same
study concluded that this occurs, because as common knowledge already
suggests, teenagers tend to listen to those they view as
professionals rather than those closest to them that teach them to
drive, like their parents. As someone who actually spent five weeks
of her summer in a sweltering hot elementary school cafeteria, and
then after stuffed in a car with overheated, over hormonal teenage
boys, I can vouch for the real-world use of drivers ed.
Even just for the fact that I was able to receive my senior license
one year early, the program was worth it for me. Everyday we’d
begin our lessons in a “classroom-esque” setting with a
“lecturer” then, we’d actually go and put our new learned
skills to the test on the road with an instructor. I even learned
most of my tips and tricks for tackling distracted driving from this
very program! Drivers ed taught me, and improved upon, the
basic skills of driving so I could become the safer, more
experienced, unticketed driver I am today. I really do owe my,
so-far, very safe driving career to my fantastic drivers ed
program.

The
number of deaths resulting from driving could easily be lowered just
by tackling the threat of distracted driving. Not to mention, driver
education programs aid a lot in car related dangers, especially for
teenagers. If we really want safer driving experiences across the
country we ourselves need to tackle our own personal distractions
while driving. It doesn’t have to be difficult, there are easy ways
we can all minimize our distractions. If we all do our part we can
all help to make our roads safer and more enjoyable.