Safe Driving Is Always an Option

Driving has been integrated into our lives in the past few decades. It is such a part of our culture that we have learned to turn a blind eye to many bad habits. We are too scared to tell someone to turn down their music, stop looking at their phones or to wait to eat their food until they reach their destinations. These ae all life-threatening habits to get into just as much as smoking or over drinking yet we still won’t say anything because they are normal.

Educating new drivers and experienced ones alike is crucial in reducing the number of deaths and crashes occurring on our roads each day by teaching people the true danger behind their bad habits. Too often people convince themselves that since they have been practicing one of those habits and nothing has happened, they are good at it. They forget there is no such thing as good texting and driving—they are just lucky. In the ideal world, every few years drivers should be required to take a “refresher” course on good habits for driving. I think that this could improve the statistics by keeping safe driving procedures fresh on driver’s minds even as adults. Most adults have not been in such a class since driver’s ed as a 15-year-old and this could make a big difference for them.

I have been lucky enough to have never been in any time of driving incident. My brothers however cannot say the same. Both of my older brothers have had their fair share of collisions while on the road, and, embarrassingly, most were their own faults. My brothers were not safe drivers as teenagers. They could honestly be considered reckless with their swerving, constant phone in their hands, speeding and always driving with multiple of their friends to distract them. Both had multiple at-fault collisions on their record throughout college. Luckily their have learned their lessons and have developed much better habits over the last few years.

I personally have only been driving for a little more than two years and have yet to have a run in with the police or insurance agency. I plan to continue this way by remembering what I was taught when I first began as well as fighting off any temptations to reach for my phone or eat in my car. I believe that leading by example is the easiest way to keep my peers from falling into bad habits. This will remove peer pressure and show them that being safe is always an option.