Breaking The Bad Habit Of Bad Driving

To say my family has a pattern of bad driving would not be a complete lie. Neither one of my parents went through a Driver’s Education program. Instead, they were taught by their parents, who taught them the habits of road rage, fast turns, and speeding up at any yellow light. While my mom grew up to be a safe driver, the same could not be said about my dad.

One day, as we were driving to my kindergarten, my dad hit another car directly as he was turning right on red. It was a long drive to school, as my dad lived in Missouri. My mom continued to enroll me in school in Kansas, where she lived, much to my dad’s displeasure. We were already 30 minutes late to school, and the school was 45 minutes away, so we barreled down the highway, weaving between cars. Just maybe, I would only miss the first hour of school! As we approached the intersection to lead into my school’s neighborhood, my dad decided to turn right on red. While turning right on red is legal, it is not always the safest choice. In this case, my dad did not look to see if anyone was turning and sped through the turn, which led to him colliding with another car. It was safe to say at this point, I was not getting to kindergarten on time that morning.

At the age of 6, I was met by a nurse and police officer who told me that the impact of the crash might lead to me becoming temporarily paralyzed at the neck. I could not move my neck, it hurt to open my mouth; my dad could not speak from the shock.

While my injuries soon healed, I often wonder: What about the many children, teenagers, and adults across the country left in a permanent state of injury due to an irresponsible driver?

In my home state of Kansas, Driver’s Education is needed for those getting a restricted permit. Yet, when you turn 17, you can opt out of Driver’s Education in exchange for a vision and driving test instead. My mom insisted that I enrolled in Driver’s Education, so I did. As an angsty 16-year-old, I was furious. All my friends were already 17! Why do I have to take Driver’s Education because I am younger than all my friends who already have their licenses? My mom enrolled me in 120 hours (which is about 5 days, to my teenage displeasure) of Driver’s Education, which is more than the minimum of 90 required hours in Kansas. I was so upset! My whole summer is now dedicated to learning how to park, turn, and stop at red lights. None of my friends had to do this, why do I?

To this day, I am the only person in my friend group to take Driver’s Education. I am also the only person to have not gotten into an accident yet.

My friends have all gotten into crashes. They have collided with people going downhill, slammed into trees and poles, and totaled cars. The one injury my car has ever had was when I was hit by a driver who decided to turn left at a ride while mine was green. When I was learning how to drive, I was warned about the number of drivers who confuse the rules of turning at a red light. I was taken through all the rules of driving to ensure my safety and others’ safety.

In the years before I enrolled in my high school, they had a required program funded by the school to enroll students in Driver’s Education. Due to budgeting issues, this program was eventually cut from our curriculum. I feel that giving students these opportunities will help make our roads safer. Many drivers in Kansas choose to opt out of Driver’s Education due to the cost. If our state gave our schools the budget and resources to supply driving lessons to students across Kansas, I believe that our roads will become safer.

I also feel that many do not comment on their friend’s bad driving habits. Often, I will see my friends go 10, or 20, miles over the speed limit and not say anything. My friends will take fast, sharp turns because they believe that it will get them to their destination quicker. My friends will weave through highway traffic because they feel that other drivers are too slow. Many of my friends have also gotten speeding tickets. Sometimes I worry that if I comment, I might offend them. Despite this, I have come to realize that I prefer having a friend who thinks I am a lam driver than a friend who ends up in an accident. I want Kansas to be safer, for all of us, so I believe that being able to speak up and being mindful of others’ habits will help the roads of Kansas succeed.