Driving Safely

Some of the most important lessons to learn in driver’s education are also the simplest and most common. Don’t text and drive, don’t drink and drive, and don’t speed. These lessons, while seem like common sense, are the most common laws broken. If simple laws like these were followed, the reduction of deaths as a result of driving would decrease immensely. Steps to reduce the number of deaths include being aware and cautious of your surroundings as well as being cautious your well being while driving. Texting and driving are also one of the easiest laws people break, mostly because of how technology obsessed society is now. I will admit that I am just as technology obsessed, but when driving I always want to be aware of my surroundings, something that all drivers, especially new drivers. Something easy for drivers to adapt to is putting their phones on ‘do not disturb’. This easy feature makes it easy for me to put my phone aside and assure that my eyes are on the road.

Another lesson that needs to be relearned by many drivers is speed limit. Many times, especially on the highway, there are many who go over the speed limit by 20 to 50 miles per hour. This is not only dangerous, but very reckless. This is also how many accidents happen, when people speed then there is a sudden stand still, which causes a pile up of multiple cars, all because one person does not slow down. The biggest problem with living in a city is how backed up streets can get during the weekends. Living just 20 minutes outside of the heart of Chicago, often just getting to school is hard. I travel from the southwest, all the way to the northeast of Chicago, and going through the city is the most dangerous part of my day. I expressed my worries about driving on the interstate highways, so often I try to take long streets, but even those prove to be dangerous.

While the highways can be dangerous, at least there are more than two lanes, and a set direction to go in. On streets, speeding can become dangerous at intersections and lights. There is an ideology that many hold, which is that the yellow light means to speed instead of slow down. This ideology presents itself in more than half of the drivers in the Chicago area. Once, I was waiting behind a car to turn on an intersection, and when the light turned yellow, the car in front of me went, but I stayed, and this caused for multiple cars behind me to honk and beep there horns at me. This was also the one time I was almost in an accident, as the car behind me assumed that I would go and pressed on the gas a bit, then hard breaked right behind me. This car honked and even rolled down the window to yell at me. This was one of the worst experiences I had while driving.

One of my cousins was involved in multiple DUIs, and ended up on probation at his job, and later committed suicide. This experience influenced me to speak out against drinking and driving. I am a college student, so I do attend parties, and every time I attend, I make sure I have enough money for an uber, as well as making sure all of my friends have enough for an uber. There are occasions where I assign myself as a designated driver because it is hard to trust others with the role. Another aspect of driving as a form of commute in college, is that often after a long day of classes, I will be tired. Sleep deprivation is so harmful to drivers, because it causes many to fall asleep at the wheel, causing more accidents. Often when I find myself too tired to drive, I will take a nap in the Student Center, or treat myself to lunch until I feel comfortable driving.

Many drivers should follow my example in this aspect, as many people would rather get behind the wheel so that they can get home faster, but making sure you are at a healthy mental state before you are behind the wheel is equally important. Having a healthy mental state at all times is important, but when you are responsible for getting yourself home and overall responsible for the safety of other drivers as well, making sure that you personally are okay to drive is just as important as not texting and driving, or not drinking and driving.