Safer Together

Since I started driving, I have been cautious and tended to be a bit slower rather than a bit too fast, but the whole time that I have been driving I have found that having a co-pilot in the passenger seat can greatly help my safety and focus while driving. Having to drive with one of my parents in the car while I had my permit before getting my driver’s license and having my mom or dad help me and guide me during my early driving experiences engrained positive safe habits in me, and now that I can drive alone I am already used to never looking at my phone while driving and even silencing it so I am not distracted by any notifications. Whether it was my grandmother, my dad, or my mom, I always loved to drive with somebody else because it made driving a fun, safe, and cooperative activity.

This past winter, my younger brother Joaquin started driving as well, and I have done all I can to help him with the process and to ensure his safety. Oftentimes I will be his passenger while he is driving, and we will talk and enjoy the time we have together. In addition to having friendly conversations with him, when I am driving with Joaquin I help him out, navigate for him, text for him, and make sure that he never feels like he should be looking away from the road. This makes the car ride safer for both of us and builds healthy safe habits for him so that later when he is driving alone he is used to not using his phone and practices safer driving habits. Only when I have been in the role of a passenger to a new teen driver have I truly realized the instrumental role in road safety of the front seat passenger, as I now am in the place to help my younger brother look for road signs, navigate, and learn the rules of the road. From my won experience driving, I know the effect having an active and supportive passenger can have, and learning to be a better passenger is a skill that can dramatically increase road safety and healthy safe driving habits. I have helped to teach Joaquin how to spot and avoid other dangerous drivers, how to balance following the speed limit and safely moving with the flow of the traffic to avoid accidents, and I have learned when to engage in friendly bonding conversation and when to remain quiet or make sure other passengers stay quiet and avoid distracting the driver. My experiences driving more cautiously and a bit too slow help me teach Joaquin driving strategies even though he tends to drive a bit too fast. Helping Joaquin learn how to switch lanes on an interstate highway and how to back up our long uphill driveway has taught me how to recognize my driver’s potentially dangerous habits or tendencies, and coach them to adapt and change behaviors to become safer.

In addition to the active responsibility I take of doing anything that Joaquin feels he needs to do other than focus on driving, such as navigation or texting, being a good passenger and driving partner makes the driver more calm and relaxed, which improves focus and relieves anxiety, making everyone in the vehicle safer. When I drive with my brother, our friendly conversations serve as a brotherly bonding experience, an opportunity for teaching and learning for both of us, and as a method of relieving the fear and nervousness that we have all felt during our first few times on the road. Through learning to drive myself with my family and through helping teach my younger brother to drive, I have learned that when the driver has an active and supportive passenger, they are not only happier and more at ease but are safer and more prepared for driving alone.

Safer Together

Since I started driving, I have been cautious and tended to be a bit slower rather than a bit too fast, but the whole time that I have been driving I have found that having a co-pilot in the passenger seat can greatly help my safety and focus while driving. Having to drive with one of my parents in the car while I had my permit before getting my driver’s license and having my mom or dad help me and guide me during my early driving experiences engrained positive safe habits in me, and now that I can drive alone I am already used to never looking at my phone while driving and even silencing it so I am not distracted by any notifications, as well as practicing other safe driving habits such as checking blind spots well and moving with the flow of the traffic. Whether it was my grandmother, my dad, or my mom, I always loved to drive with somebody else because it made driving a fun, safe, and cooperative activity.

This past winter, my younger brother Joaquin started driving as well, and I have done all I can to help him with the process and to ensure his safety. Oftentimes I will be his passenger while he is driving, and we will talk and enjoy the time we have together. In addition to having friendly conversations with him, when I am driving with Joaquin I help him out, navigate for him, text for him, and make sure that he never feels like he should be looking away from the road. This makes the car ride safer for both of us and builds healthy safe habits for him so that later when he is driving alone he is used to not using his phone and practices safer driving habits. Only when I have been in the role of a passenger to a new teen driver have I truly realized the instrumental role in road safety of the front seat passenger, as I now am in the place to help my younger brother look for road signs, navigate, and learn the rules of the road.

From my own experience driving, I know and greatly value the effect having an active and supportive passenger can have, and learning to be a better passenger is a skill that can dramatically increase road safety and healthy safe driving habits. I have helped to teach Joaquin how to spot and avoid other dangerous drivers, how to balance following the speed limit and safely moving with the flow of the traffic to avoid accidents, and I have learned when to engage in friendly bonding conversation and when to remain quiet or make sure other passengers stay quiet and avoid distracting the driver. My experiences driving more cautiously and a bit too slow help me teach Joaquin driving strategies even though he tends to drive a bit too fast. Helping Joaquin learn how to switch lanes on an interstate highway and how to back up our long and winding uphill driveway has taught me how to recognize my driver’s potentially dangerous habits or tendencies, and coach them to adapt and change behaviors to become safer.

In addition to the active responsibility I take of doing anything that Joaquin feels he needs to do other than focus on driving, such as navigation or texting, being a good passenger and driving partner makes the driver more calm and relaxed, which improves focus and relieves anxiety, making everyone in the vehicle safer. When I drive with my brother, our friendly conversations serve as a brotherly bonding experience, an opportunity for teaching and learning for both of us, and as a method of relieving the fear and nervousness that we have all felt during our first few times on the road. Through learning to drive myself with my family and through helping teach my younger brother to drive, I have learned that when the driver has an active and supportive passenger, they are not only happier and more at ease but are safer and more prepared for driving alone.