Driver Education

Lauren Heller

Initiative Award: In the Driver’s Seat

Driver education is very important to slowing death rates as a result of driving. Drivers training would not be a requirement to get your license if it wasn’t important. If the law just let everyone get behind the wheel at 16 with no training, death rates would drastically increase. Driving is a skill that not everyone has, it requires tons of focus and patience.

Most teenagers do not take driving as seriously as they should, they don’t realize that when they drive recklessly, they are not only putting themselves at risk but also others. If you can recklessly drive and not worry about your surroundings and how you could possibly harm others, you have no business being on the road.

There are many easy ways to reduce deaths related to driving. Most people when on the road, are not 100% focused on driving, if you’re a mother with children, you have to balance driving while helping out your kids when needed. If you’re a teen, it’s most common that you are texting while driving, just put the phone down and focus on what’s important, keeping yourself and others safe.

I have had many of my own experiences related to irresponsible driving. There’s been times I don’t feel safe being in a car with someone. Knowing that someone else besides me is behind the wheel is terrifying. The driver could look away for one second and next thing you know, your life has been taken. That’s a scary thing to think about. There’s so many ways you can avoid dangerous situations. Yes, there are also times where there’s nothing you can do to avoid a certain situation. But I believe one of the biggest steps you can take to keep yourself and others safe on the road is just for the couple minutes you’re driving, give it 100% attention. Put the phone down, wear a seatbelt, do not get behind the wheel under the influence, and most importantly, watch your surroundings.

The chance of dying while driving is around 1 in 77; now if you think about it, there are about 7.6 billion people in the world. That means the chances of dying while driving is pretty high. In 2019, almost 30 people died from drunk driving everyday, according to NHTSA that’s around 1 person every 50 minutes. And 1 out of every 4 car accidents are caused by distracted driving. There are so many ways to avoid this. If you do happen to be intoxicated, make sure you have someone to drive you, Uber was made for that reason. When it comes to distracted driving, it’s most common that it’s texting and driving. Put the phones down, it’s as simple as that! A lot of other things can serve as distractions while driving. Make sure to fix your mirrors, put your seatbelt on, and adjust your seat all before you begin to drive. Pay attention to the road and watch your surroundings. Doing “sick” tricks, and speeding everywhere is not worth risking your life, or others.