Safe Driving Precaution

Getting surprised by a cop and receiving a ticket as a gift on the way to pick up pizza was the last thing on my bucket list. Unfortunately though, that was my first ticket. Time slowed down as the cop slowly walked to my car. I prayed that I’d receive a warning instead, however the only warning I received that day was one from parents threatening to strip away my driving privileges. “Alright now son get another ticket and watch what happen. That car will be doing the mannequin challenge right in the back yard.” After that seventy-six dollar ticket, I promised myself I would become a safer, more careful, and dependable driver. Ensuring my safety along with the safety of others immediately became a personal goal while driving. Although I’ve never struggled looking both ways at a stop sign or putting on my seatbelt, staying below my preferred speed limit and eliminating minor distractions were incorporated to ensure the safety of others as well as myself.

Before receiving my first ticket, being too heavy on the gas peddle was one of my biggest issues. Whether on the highway, a back road, or the interstate I always lost track of how fast I was traveling. You may be thinking, “How could someone lose track of how fast their going? The speedometer is right in front of your face.” I thought the same thing after paying that ticket. I knew the speedometer was there and never had a problem speeding before receiving my license. But as soon as I received my license, I began to disregard it. I became accustomed to driving at least 10mph above the speed limit. After the ticket and some self-analyzing, I realized that minor distractions kept me from focusing on how fast I was driving. The radio station, loud music, my phone and even light conversation constantly derailed my attention. Upon realizing this, I immediately begin working on ways to fix my attention on what was important which was driving safely.

Staying out of harms way on the road requires a considerable amount of attention inside and outside the vehicle. Minor distractions like constantly changing the radio station or periodically picking up your phone after every notification is life threatening. Setting your radio to your favorite song or station before you decide to hop in rush hour traffic is one of the best practices promoting a safer driving environment. Also, silencing your phone while driving assures that you are free from distracting notifications and unnecessary calls. Attempting to text and drive is a life threatening activity that can result in death in an instant. It places the life of the driver, the passengers and other drivers on the road at risk. Instead of putting your phone down and attempting to simply ignore every notification, silencing your phone completely destroys the luring temptation of picking up the phone. Implementing these few disciplines will result in a safer driving environment.

In conclusion, these simple and effective precautions have the ability to dramatically reduce car accidents and car related deaths. Tragic accidents occur far to often on a daily basis and needs to come to an end. Aside from accidents, reckless driving habits must also be improved so that our driving safety is guaranteed. Its time for unnecessary deaths to come to an end. The most effective way to start that process is to begin practicing these safe-driving precautions. As I practice silencing my phone and watching the speed limit before those riding with me, they’ll be influenced and challenged to do the same. Also, addressing driving habits with friends will help increase the awareness and the importance of safe driving. That’s why I began implementing these simple yet effective practices into my driving. So that safety is guaranteed and so that lives will be spared. Do you want to be responsible for the death of a loved one because you decided to exceed the speed limit? Would you enjoy burdening the guilt, the shame, and disgust of killing someone simply because you couldn’t wait to reply to a silly text? Better yet, do you want to be responsible for a life being lost because you lost control of your car while simply changing the radio to your preferred station? I sure don’t and I’m sure you don’t either. Lets get rid of the surprise deaths and unexpected wrecks and tickets once and for all and lets welcome driving safely without distraction.