The Power of Plastic

Nelson: two missed calls, one iMessage.

I frowned as I clocked out for my break and sunk into one of the rickety chairs. It was rare that my family tried to contact me while I was at work, but it was an even greater rarity that my brother was contacting me at all. Our relationship thrives off of in person interactions. I unlocked my phone to see his message and my heart dropped in my chest.

Mom’s been in an accident

Fumbling, I immediately exited the break room for a semblance of privacy and called my brother. He picked up after a few rings — which seemed like hours — and handed the phone to my mom who relayed the details of the accident.

The person who caused the accident was a sixteen year old. He had a few other teenagers in the car with him. My mom said that she could see him veering into the lane going in the opposite direction. She tried to swerve out the way but it was too late, he hit the right side of her car and totaled another car. Thankfully, none of them were injured, but I couldn’t help but think about how different the outcome could’ve been. Being a new driver, the accident rattled me. Teenagers with licenses are risky since we’re so new to driving, but at the end of the day, anyone with a license can be dangerous. When I was doing driver’s ed, my instructor often repeated the saying “drive for others and not yourself”.

Driver’s education is one of the most important aspects when working to obtain a license. Driver’s education teaches safe driving habits that play a direct role in reducing accidents. It also is beneficial to spend a couple hours behind the wheel to really improve your driving. Before I took a driver’s ed course, I was nervous driving on the roads, but once I had my first class where we drove for two hours along open roads, my nervousness developed into a cautious alertness. When I finally sat for my road test and received my license, I was faced with a new responsibility. I was now equipped with a small piece of plastic that held the power of life and death. I stared at the card for a long stretch of time before I stuffed it into my wallet. I’ve now been driving for six months, yet I still feel the weight of my responsibility. This responsibility is not only to myself, but to other drivers, pedestrians and motorists as well.

I believe there are many things drivers can do to prevent the number of accidents that occur in the United States. One of the most obvious distractions are cell phones. I remember when the Hands Free Law was enacted in Georgia a few years ago . It was on July 1st, my dad’s birthday, and everyone was rushing to buy phone mounts for their cars. Even though that law was enacted, I regularly see drivers sending last minute texts at red stoplights or even holding their phones up to their ears. It astounds me that people are reckless enough to do this. Cell phones are our biggest distractor, and the statistics clearly show it. The National Safety Council reported that 1.6 million crashes occur each year due to cell phone use behind the wheel. And 24% of those accidents caused injuries. These accidents could have been prevented if drivers would put their phone away while driving. It’s sad to think that many could have still been living, but died because of a cell phone.

Practicing safe driving habits also sets a good example for those who might be in the car with you. Our first role models are our parents or guardians, and if a young child sees their parents experience road rage, use their cell phone while driving or other unsafe habits, in most cases they will naturally adopt those actions when they get behind the wheel. This is why drivers education classes and even taking a defensive driving course can really make the difference in one’s daily driving habits. Another benefit of driver’s ed and defensive driving is an insurance discount. Car insurance is expensive, especially for teenagers, so any amount can truly make a difference.

Driving comes with a lot of responsibility, which is why I think there should be more access to affordable yet quality drivers education. I believe securing our cell phones away while driving can also greatly decrease the statistics. Just think: everyone of those devastating statistics was once a person who had a life. But because of their or others reckless driving habits, they’ve become another number. We can all work to build safer driving habits as well as a safer environment.