Small Changes, Big Results

I live in Northern Virginia, near Washington, DC. People here are maniacs behind the wheel. There’s lots of speeding, texting while driving, and aggressive driving. Across the United.States, unsafe driving is a serious problem resulting in many deaths. Better driver education and small behavior changes would make a big difference in reducing risks and deaths.

Driver education is extremely important in reducing the number of deaths. Teachers not only teach the rules of the road and give safety tips but also stress the importance of being alert and the risks a driver takes when getting behind the wheel. Not knowing everything can be deadly. However, I think driver education should be refreshed later on in a person’s life. People forget things, and laws change. For example holding a handheld phone while driving is now illegal in Virginia; without a refresher course, someone might not know that. Furthermore, flashing yellow left-turn arrows have recently been introduced. They make perfect sense to me because I learned about them in my driver education course, but they confuse my parents because the lights are new and my parents weren’t taught about it.

There are many things that can be done to reduce the number of deaths related to driving. A later-in-life driver education course is just one. Encouraging people to use their phone’s do not disturb while driving feature would help prevent distracted driving. By not receiving notifications, people won’t be tempted to look down at their phone or reply to messages. Staying alert and keeping your eyes on the road will help reduce the number of deaths. Wearing a seatbelt is extremely valuable in preventing deaths. We can all encourage our friends to buckle up. Drinking and driving is also extremely deadly. There are many ways to avoid this with designated drivers and the emergence of ride share apps.

I believe everyone’s seen or experienced some sort of unsafe driving. My sister speeds too much and my dad takes his hands off the wheel to get something out of his pocket. One time my school bus got in a crash. Someone ran a red light and the bus driver had to slam on the brakes. The bus behind us rear ended us. This all could’ve been avoided if the person had just obeyed the traffic light. I’ve also been hit on my own. I was stopped at a red light, and a woman was trying to quickly get across multiple lanes into the turn lane. She hit the back of my car. She said she was showing a house on that road, so I think she was about to miss the turn. It’s better to miss your turn and be a few minutes late to something than to drive unsafely. The same goes for speeding. It’s better to be a few minutes late than to speed and end up in a horrific crash.

My sister’s car has been hit twice. Once someone hit it while it was parked outside of our house. Another time she was side swiped. When I was hit, it was on the same road. She was also stopped at a red light. This goes to show how people need to pay more attention. Both times my sister was hit were hit and runs.

One way I can become a safer driver is to stop eating while driving. When I have to quickly go from somewhere to soccer practice, I eat while I’m on my way to practice. It would be much safer to eat before I leave and maybe be a few minutes late than to eat while driving. Having food in my hand means it’s not fully on the wheel and my attention isn’t one hundred percent focused on driving. By stopping this, I can make myself much safer. I can help others become safer drivers by telling them when they’re being unsafe and encouraging them to make changes. I can also offer to drive if it’s a situation where they’re going to be distracted or unsafe. If I ever came across someone who had been drinking, I would do everything possible to prevent them from getting behind the wheel.

Small behavioral changes can be monumental in reducing crashes and deaths. A lot of crashes are caused by one thing, like eating or speeding. A second driver education course will keep people up to date and refresh them on the rules of the road. By wearing a seatbelt, not looking at your phone, making smart decisions, and avoiding drinking and driving the roads would become much safer.