Through Safe Driving, Choose to Save Lives, Not Take Them

Kodilyn Winterton

29 November 2020

Through Safe Driving, Choose to Save Lives, Not Take Them

The ability to get behind the wheel beginning as young as sixteen years old is both a blessing and a curse. Driving gets a person from point A to point B within a certain amount of time, which is extremely beneficial. However, safety is never ensured while in an automobile. Driving is easily one of the most dangerous tasks that we, as humans, perform each and every day.

In fact, it is estimated that more than 38,000 people lose their lives due to car accidents each year in the United States, as well as 4.4 million people injured enough to seek medical attention. Driver education is important because the knowledge of how to drive properly and knowing to focus on the road at all times is necessary for reducing the number of deaths caused by driving. The University of Nebraska states, “Teens taking driver education are less likely to be involved in crashes or to receive a traffic violation during their first two years of driving.” According to Consumer Reports, in order to diminish the number of crashes and fatalities each year, there are six recommended steps a person should keep in mind. Step number one is to avoid drunk or buzzed driving, driving with alcohol in the bloodstream will cause impaired driving, which can result in an accident. The next step is to avoid distracted driving. Distracted driving consists of texting or talking on the phone. Continually, do not speed while driving. There are speed limits for a reason, they keep everyone going at an equal rate. In 2013, 29% of car accident deaths were caused by speeding. The fourth step is to watch your surroundings in parking lots. While driving in a parking lot, the person is mostly focused on finding a place to park, not what is going on around them. This causes fender benders, as well as people getting hit by drivers. The fifth step in safe driving is to drive the right car. Choose a car that has good safety marks, and is reliable. Finally, advanced safety systems in vehicles can help ensure safety. New cars with more advanced technology and electronic stability control have been proven to lower the risk of an accident by half.

In my personal experiences, I had a close friend get in an accident due to distracted driving just this past year. He was running late to basketball practice, and was going about 55 miles per hour, when he decided he needed some music for his ten minute drive. For a split second, he looked down at his phone to choose a song. During that split second, the truck in front of him slammed on the brakes because they had almost missed the left turn they had to take. My friend, realizing the front end of his car was about to run into this person’s back bumper, immediately pushed his foot to the breaks. However, he was unable to slow down fast enough. The hood of his car flew open as the front half of the vehicle became compacted like cement. Fortunately, no one was harmed in the accident. My friend had buckled his seatbelt first before putting the automobile in drive. If he hadn’t done this, he would’ve been tossed through the windshield and lost his life at too young of an age. This experience is why I choose everyday to put my phone away in the car, put my seatbelt on, and practice safe driving for my sake and others.