Arrive Alive

Arrive Alive

In a society where use of social media has continued to rise, the number of traffic fatalities has also continued to rise. That being said, it is imperative for new drivers to attend driver education in an effort to reduce the number of deaths while driving. I say this because the vast number of rules and laws related to driving go out the window when someone from another state desires to obtain their driver’s license without having knowledge of that particular state’s rules, laws, and different traffic regulations. This being said, I would recommend that a newcomer to a state who wants to obtain their driver’s license, must attend an abbreviated, in-person, driver education course. Although visitors from other states who pass through will always be at a disadvantage when it comes to familiarization with a particular state’s traffic safety laws, when a new resident must have a driver’s license to obtain certain desired benefits, they will take that abbreviated course. This is just one step which would reduce the number of deaths when driving.

Another step that can be taken to reduce the number of driving deaths is specifically aimed at reducing driver inattention. Although I have not had the experience of being in a car accident, I do know that having witnessed driving with my family and friends, driver inattention from within the vehicle and outside of the vehicle is a real problem. With cellphones, the idea behind “driving mode” is for drivers to not readily access their phones. The fact of the matter is that the driving mode can be nullified if the driver identifies themselves as a passenger. In an effort to reduce the number of deaths when driving, I recommend that once a person (driver or passenger) is in a moving vehicle, when the cellphone recognizes this vehicle movement, it will only allow the functionality of 911 for emergency calls and GPS for navigation. Although I know that I will not make friends with this limited cellphone driver safety feature, the person who chooses to use their cellphone would simply need to pullover at a safe spot and put their vehicle in park. By doing so from a parked position, the cellphone will allow full access until the vehicle is in movement again.

I currently engage in a few steps to be a safer and better driver. To begin with, when I am driving alone in my car, I put the cellphone in the glove box so that it is not readily accessible unless I take the time to pull over and open the glove box. Secondly, when I witness that someone is being an inattentive and impatient driver, I attempt to kindly wave them to go ahead in front of me. I do this for two reasons. My first reason for waving this person ahead of me is so that I do not feel pressured because their impatience will ultimately lead them to riding my bumper and, thus, becomes my distraction. The second reason why I allow the impatient driver to go ahead of me is to create a safe distance between my car and theirs because, odds are, if that driver is in such a rush, I will at least have enough time to stop for the accident that they will be causing ahead of me. Lastly, when it comes to me riding with my friends and family, as the passenger I take it upon myself to help the driver by answering their cellphone or giving the necessary navigation directions, which significantly reduces their need to be distracted by the cellphone.

Driver education is important to reducing the number of driving deaths by increasing the awareness of others on the roads and the rules of the road in an effort to remain safe. By reducing the opportunities for drivers to become less attentive at the wheel, the chances of the driver arriving at their destination has increased exponentially. Although there will always be the individual driver who thinks that their life is more important than that of everyone on the road around them, as individual responsible drivers, we can each do our part to ensure that we have taken the smarter steps to enable us to arrive alive.