Persistence

Madelyn Porter

Salida, CO

Persistence

In 2018 the National Safety Council recorded an estimated 40,000 lives lost in motor vehicle accidents across the country. Hundreds of thousands of more suffered injuries, some permanent and largely debilitating. These deaths and injuries not only affect the victim, but their friends, families, and communities too. Someone can be happily married and in a matter of seconds, their spouse is yanked away from them by a preventable accident. Children who are still discovering the wonders of the world can have their curiosity extinguished by a reckless driver.

Drivers ed is essential to the safety of our communities and thus an incredibly important course in everyone’s life. The presentation of driver’s ed can be incredibly influential. In my own class, the instructor emphasized that driving is not a right it is a responsibility, which instilled in me the necessity of earning it, consequently encouraging me to drive safely. If the notion of responsibility is reiterated throughout everyday life for adults, the privilege would become apparent leading them to take extra caution.

One key to getting through to people is to implement education into common tasks. Each year when vehicle registrations are renewed a mandatory course could be presented virtually, in person, or by mail. The course could focus on major shortcomings in driver safety and reiterate traffic rules that may be forgotten. Failure to complete can result in a consequence such as a fine.

Driver safety could be woven into intersectional social movements as well. Promoting the use of public transportation, biking, walking, and carpooling, can not only act as a solution to reducing car accidents, but also a way to fight the climate crisis. By connecting the two a wider audience could be reached and new perspectives introduced.

I have never been in an accident, however, my family is full of chronic speeders. They always seem to be in a rush and whether intentionally or not tend to ignore the speed limit. In recent years they have gotten better with encouragement from those of us who reprimand them for us. Teenagers are statistically the worst drivers, and the teens I have driven with are no exception. Although overall my friends are good drivers we are all also music fanatics and take playing music in the car very seriously. Sometimes when the driver is the DJ they pick up their phone without thinking to choose songs. These habits are examples of two of the leading causes of accidents: speeding and distracted driving.

I personally can work on being a better driver, by keeping both hands on the wheel, monitoring my lead foot, and enjoying whatever I am listening to while I’m driving. I am not a perfect driver and never will be, but thinking about my safety and the safety of my passengers motivates me to work toward it every day.

Driving safety can be easily overlooked, but this negligence is ruinous to hundreds of thousands of people every year. Emphasizing the responsibility of driving, persistent driver’s education, and promoting alternative travel are just a few steps to help reduce the number of car accidents and consequently motor vehicle-related harm. We can work as individuals and communities to promote safety, protecting ourselves and others.