A Change in Mindset can Reduce Driving Deaths

A Change in Mindset can Reduce Driving Deaths

Of the varying causes of accidental deaths, vehicular deaths are those that could be the most avoided. This is because vehicular death is often the result of deliberate behavior. When one person chooses to operate a vehicle while under the influence or chooses to distract themselves while driving, they have put not only their own life but the lives of everyone else on the road at risk.

I believe a general shift in mentality is needed to reduce the number of vehicular deaths. A pedal bike cannot reach speeds like that of a motorized vehicle. When one gets behind the wheel of a car, they are operating something that could kill someone should a situation turn out poorly. This understanding that a car is not a toy, but a tool should be the foundation of reducing vehicular death.

As stated before, the seriousness of what a vehicle is needs to be emphasized. A tangible example of this is to show the damage that a distracted or drunk driver can do. According to the NHTSA in 2018, 2,841 lives were needlessly lost due to someone operating a vehicle while on their phone or distracted in some other way. The most tragic of this number, I feel, is that 77 bicyclists and 400 pedestrians died at the hands of a negligent driver.

I feel this change begins with people being more considerate of the lives of everyone else around them. Is a text message worth possibly harming or killing someone else? When we begin to consider that the people around us on the road are people like ourselves with dreams, goals, and ambitions, it becomes easier to avoid reckless and thoughtless behavior.

I’ve never personally been in an accident but a friend of mine has. She was walking home from work on the phone with her boyfriend. She came to a crosswalk and waited her turn to walk across. As the lights changed and she began walking, a distracted driver hit her around her hip area. Thankfully, there was only minor physical damage to her, but the event has still traumatized her to this day. This event happened at least two years ago but the repercussions of it can still be seen today. We were together not long ago, and she happened to mention that she kept getting flashbacks to that event. She also stated that since that accident, her hip would occasionally flair up in pain on rainy days. While I am glad that she is okay, if the person that hit her had been paying attention to the road, this event would have never happened.

I stated earlier that we should be considerate of the other people on the road and I am guilty of not always practicing what I preach. I do, however, believe this is where change begins. Instead of assuming the worst of the other people on the road, I’m learning to try to understand that that other driver might be inexperienced, dealing with an emergency, or maybe even just scared for some reason. Taking a step back and realizing that my needs are not the center of the universe frees me to try to understand what someone else could be going through at a specific moment in time.

In closing, what I’m advocating for is a change in mindset. Instead of being entirely concerned with ourselves and where we need to go, consider the people around you. Our actions don’t affect simply us. When debating sending a text or drinking while driving, consider how your actions could affect the other people on the road. I believe thinking about driving in this way would lead to far fewer vehicular fatalities and pointless loss of life.