Put the Phone down, it can wait.

Put the phone down, it can wait.

Have you ever heard the story about Pavlov’s dog? A study was done and basically a dog was trained to salivate every time a bell rang. Unfortunately I think we are that dog salivating when our phones ring or buzz. Our eyes turn to our phone without even thinking because we must see who is reaching out to us. Studies show that 1 out of every 4 car accidents in the United State are caused by texting and driving. We have probably all had the experience of driving at night and looking into the car next to us only to find the glow of the phone close to the drivers face as they read a text or watch a video. Combine this involuntary act with the act of driving and you have a recipe for true disaster. There are apps available that will block text messages while driving. I also think simply putting the phone out of sight in your bag for example would reduce that temptation and put our focus back on the road.

Driver education is meant to provide the tools to new drivers on how to operate a motor vehicle while following the rules of the road. In person learning and on the road training are key steps to earning your driver’s license. Experience is also essential to developing good driving habits. I also think understanding those most dangerous situations and avoiding them is a key to safe driving. The word accident is defined as an unfortunate incident that happens unexpectedly and unintentionally, typically resulting in damage or injury. No one means for an accident to happen but by stopping at stop signs, obeying the speed limit, signaling when you change lanes and driving defensively you can avoid accidents.

One important lesson I learned during a conversation with my insurance agent, who happens to be my father, was that serious injuries and fatalities that can result from left hand turns. Many times we may think it’s clear to turn left and we misjudge the distance of the person coming the other direction. We may be trying “to make the light” or trying to get out of an intersection. Drivers may be traveling at high speeds but we are still in the wrong for turning in front of someone. We are putting ourselves and our passengers at high risk by these actions. It may sound silly but waiting for a green arrow to turn or proceeding to a safer route by turning right and finding a traffic signal could help you avoid serious injury. The other simple thing that we can all do is take our time. Most of us are in a hurry rushing from place to place. If we could all take our time, stop and look, which are key lessons we learned in driver’s education we would see the number of accidents reduced drastically.