PDA for Drivers: Patience, Discipline, and Awareness

PDA
for Drivers: Patience, Discipline, and Awareness

Driving
is not for the playful and aggressive. One should take consideration
of all the things that matter when driving. Life is the most
important thing that should be taken into account the minute you hold
that steering wheel and press on that gas. In 2005, there were over
40,000 deaths due to reckless driving, DUI, and speeding. And to make
matters worst, the number one reason for car accidents is distracted
drivers. A new driver could simply underestimate the death-causing
power of driving so I want to say that drivers should have patience,
discipline, and awareness.

It
is critical that a new driver or even a driver with several years of
experience is patient and well educated with how simply driving could
result in a fatal death of the people around them. I remember when I
first got here in the US, the first thing I wanted to try is to drive
a car because back in the Philippines I only drove a motorcycle. I
really saw driving as an easy task that could be learned in a few
minutes, but there is more to it than that. As a motorcycle rider, I
have trained some of my friends on how to drive using my motorcycle,
and one particular event led to one of my friends hitting a wall
during practice driving. She was okay, no worries. I know that riding
a motorcycle is a different experience than driving four wheels but
what I want to say is that you could also end your very own life just
by not being educated on driving properly. It would greatly help a
lot of people if you as a driver, knows how to follow traffic rules
not just by the book but by heart.

There
has to be something we could do to eliminate car-related accidents
resulting in death and that has to start with discipline. In my
everyday travel to and from work, school, and back home, I have
encountered a lot of people driving like they are on a race track or
feel like they are driving along a lonely road. Most of the time I
really wished that cops are just around the corner to pull them over.
Such drivers are the reasons why I get scared to drive sometimes not
because I am really afraid but I just don’t want any damage to my
car due to the repairs being expensive and time-consuming. I am going
to be honest and I want to share that I had a speeding ticket for
driving 20 miles over the limit on a highway with a 55 miles limit.
Running late for work is not an excuse even though I really am
running late for work but all things aside, discipline just does not
apply when driving but also with all the things we do because most of
the things we do are the result of the actions we take. If I did not
take up too much time preparing for work then I might not have had to
drive so fast.

Another
thing that we as drivers should have is awareness. Remember that the
reason for most of the car-related accidents is caused by distracted
drivers driving like they own the road while texting or trying to
pick up something or by simply shifting the focus on things that
catch their attention. By simply being aware of your surroundings is
the first step on being a better and safer driver and at the same
time educating other people i.e. your family and friends could
immensely aid to form a community of safe drivers. Second is by being
focused on the road and pay attention to road signs and people
crossing. In Arizona, drivers should yield for any pedestrian
crossing any unmarked crosswalk, that is why drivers should always
pay attention to the road. All of these should be taken into
consideration to protect not just the people around us but ourselves
too.

Generally,
being patient, disciplined, and aware will not cost us anything but
with the lack thereof, it will cost us everything. We should always
have to remember that cars are tons of deathly projections when we
speed so we have to be very careful. We have to always think about
life, money, and time given to us for free so we should take driving
seriously and not recklessly.