The Essentiality of Safe Driving

When the automobile was first introduced to American soil in the late 1910’s, driver safety wasn’t on the minds of the American government nor American car manufacturers. Cars back then were no faster than a horse (if not slower) and too expensive for the majority of the American populace to afford one. It wasn’t until after WWI ended that Americans bought cars. After World War I, technology of engines had increased greatly due to the need of tanks on the Western and Eastern fronts of the war. While people weren’t driving tanks, they were still driving practical automobiles to and from work every day. As the decades progressed more and more families bought cars. Soon, families had more than one car. With all these people driving cars, the dangers of irresponsible driving became a major issue and still has been with the rise of the smartphone and smartwatches.

To begin, I’ll share my experience with irresponsible driving. I myself have never been in a car accident but my cousin has been. In late 2018 she was driving from work and received a text from one of her friends. As many teenagers would, she picked up the phone to look at her text and as she did she lost attention to the road and veered off of it. She lost control of her car soon after she veered off the road and her car rammed into a guard rail head on. She was in the hospital for weeks if not months. She suffered a major concussion, a broken orbital bone, and a broken nose. A couple months of rehabilitating in a hospital all because she couldn’t go without looking at her phone for a few more blocks. After this incident, my eight-year old self took note and vowed to be a responsible driver when I got my license in eight years.

This exact scenario has happened to too many teenagers in the past decade. Teens who engage in these dangerous actions that threaten their lives each second they engage in it. Thankfully, the U.S. government has taken action to help reduce the death toll from these completely avoidable incidents by requiring prospective drivers to take and pass a multiple choice test to first obtain their permit. This training along with the six months of hands on driving should adequately prepare the prospective driver to pass the driving test. All these tests are great and in my experience have taught me how to be a safe driver but very few drivers practice these behaviors a few weeks after they have obtained their license. After the driver gets more comfortable driving they will have one hand on the wheel and usually the other hand in their lap. Or worse, messing with their radio, smartwatch, or on their phone.

Keeping drivers to practice responsible driving habits is important but unrealistic to ensure everyone is following the law. Newer cars have taken great strides to force the driver and passengers to wear seatbelts as the car itself won’t start unless all riders have their seat belts fastened. While a great safety precaution, this doesn’t account for the thousands of teens who text and drive. There is no way, that wouldn’t violate someone’s right to privacy, to enforce the no texting and driving rule. We have traffic cops but there is only so many on patrol at one time. Ultimately, it is to the driver to be responsible for their safety and everyone else’s.

As I’ve stated prior, I used my cousins accident as a lifelong lesson against the dangers of texting and driving. And unfortunately, that’s what it takes for some people to learn not to text and drive. It takes an injury to themselves or a loved one, or worse, a fatality, to understand that their text can wait and it’s not worth putting your and others’ life at risk for something that can wait an extra five minutes. I’ve taken the lesson to heart and have forbid myself to get behind the wheel and use a mobile device or do anything that puts myself, my passengers, or other motorists in harm’s way. I take the initiative to put my phone on a mount on my dash so it’s in view and I don’t have the urge to check it every twenty minutes. I also make sure all passengers wear their seatbelts when I am driving. Furthermore, when I am not behind the wheel, I keep a watchful eye to make sure that the person driving isn’t coming close to the white nor yellow line, off their phone, maintaining a speed that’s at the speed limit, and overall following the traffic laws. I plan on continuing to use these rules for the rest of my life as I do not want to be a statistic. I don’t want to be another case of “only if he put the phone down.” That is not how I want to be remembered and that’s not how I want my friends to be remembered. Such adherence has allowed me to drive with comfort knowing I am not a danger to myself or to others.