In The Drivers Seat

Driving a motorized vehicle is one of the most common actions in America. Vehicles are one of the greatest inventions and revolutions in history. They allow for faster transportation, and come with lots of other activities, including racing, working, and joy riding. However, with all vehicles, there is lots of safety and knowledge that goes into it all. For America, this is one of the biggest problems. 

Driver’s education should raise a gut-wrenching concern for Americans as the total amount of vehicle related deaths in just one year is more than a whole war combined. Driver’s education is very important, and should be focused on more in the near future. Vehicles are very dangerous, and drivers have to know how to properly operate one and be cautious of other drivers as well. If America wants to see a lower number of deaths each year from driving related incidents, changes need to be made to the driver’s education. People rely and trust their life with other drivers, meaning people’s lives should not be at risk because of poor driver’s education.

Everybody that earns themselves a license to drive goes through a training course, but how much knowledge do they actually receive from the course? I participated in a small course through my local courthouse, and to be honest, I truly do not think I gained as much knowledge as I should have. Although, from a young age, I do believe I have obtained a lot of knowledge when it comes to driving because of my parents and growing up around a farm. Personally, I think most of the experience and knowledge kids have for driving comes from how and where they grew up. 

There are many steps that can be taken to reduce the number of deaths related to driving. A huge step is obviously driver’s education. Kids that are just learning to drive should be required to pass a stricter course than what is currently provided, and their parents should monitor them as they continue to learn. Secondly, distractions while driving are a huge factor when it comes to driving related deaths. According to “idrivesafely.com”, distracted driving is the single biggest cause of fatalities. These distractions come from other people in the vehicle, cell phones, the radio, or even reaching for something on the floor. Drivers don’t realize that these small distractions can lead to death of themselves, or even another person in just a split second. With focusing more on these two steps, the number of deaths related to driving will decrease. 

As I stated before, distractions cause many accidents, and even fatalities. For myself, I was involved in a small car accident, as a result of a distraction from the driver behind me. This made every passenger involved realize that an accident can happen in just a split moment, and once it happens, there is no changing the outcome. I could imagine all of the people that have been involved in a fatal accident due to distractions, but I could not imagine the regret that those people feel. Just by being alert and eliminating small distractions, fatal car accidents would decrease in an instant.

When it comes to improving personal driving knowledge and awareness, there is always something we can be better at. As I mentioned before, distractions play a huge role in vehicle accidents, and I catch myself texting and driving every once in a while. I can most definitely improve on my distractions, and others can too. You may think you are a perfect driver and have no chance of being in a car accident, but all it takes is one driver that is not experienced or that doesn’t have the correct driving knowledge to change that. My dad, a volunteer firefighter and first responder of frequent vehicle accidents, always tells my brothers and I, “I know you guys are good drivers and think that you should have nothing to worry about, but all it takes is for that one driver to take that all away from you, so please pay attention to the road and others the whole time.” 

All in all, as a person in the driver’s seat, I see lots of ways that America as a whole can improve when it comes to driver’s education. Without proper education, loved ones are being taken away from their families and friends, when it’s not even their fault. With driving being more statistically dangerous for our nation than being involved in combat, it says a lot about how much improvement America can make. Driver’s education is very necessary and important, especially for the future of our country.