Dangerous Habits We Refuse to Normalize

With
learning drivers having access to modern technology, you would think
disastrous motor vehicle accidents
of the past would remain there. But the abundance of information has
proven futile in lowering the devastating results of unsafe driving.
At first glance, modern technology seems like a boon in teaching the
next generation. But with online textbooks and navigation systems,
technology also brings a new era of distracted drivers. Formal
education for all prospective drivers is vital if we want to keep
them and those around them safe. When you gain your license you also
gain responsibility. You have the ability to impact the lives of
those around you and if you’re not careful, the negative
repercussions could be fatal. Among teens, motor vehicle accidents
have shown to be particularly fatal. While some credence can be
attributed to the fact that teens are inexperienced, distracted
driving is a huge contributor. They learn these habits from someone
and pass them on to create more dangerous drivers.

Being
a passenger on many road trips has shown me how normalized dangerous
driving has become. I grew up watching my dad drink red bulls and
coffees to keep himself awake on long trips down the east coast. I
thought nothing of it when he drove for hours on end, and I’d make
a game of how many totaled cars I could spot on our journey south.
But becoming a driver who learned how to drive responsibly makes me
question how many of those accidents were preventable if the driver
got a few hours of sleep between long drives, or stayed off of a cell
phone call. We can only become better drivers when we recognize the
behavior and refuse to normalize it. When we take a break every
couple of hours to avoid fatigue instead of pushing on, we become
better drivers. When we refuse to text until we’re parked, we become
better drivers. When we call out others on their unsafe habits, we
become better drivers. By refusing to normalize unsafe habits and
refusing to partake in these habits, we become better drivers.

Many
of these things may seem like common sense, but sometimes we need to
be reminded of our responsibilities as a driver. Formal driving
education helps impart these lessons on students that they likely
won’t forget. Our driving education is more than learning behind
the wheel. It’s in-person classes that ingrain the lesson. It’s
reading the manual that teaches you the written rules of the road and
not the unspoken ones. It’s taking corrections when a friend points
out unsafe behavior, and being that friend if necessary. When we
learn how to be safe drivers, we teach others how to be safe drivers.
And only when we consciously decide to drive safely and avoid
preventable motor vehicle accidents, can we truly say we have taken
our responsibilities as a driver seriously.