Pass the Class, Avoid the Crash

Pass
the Class, Avoid the Crash

Educating
drivers on the importance of responsible driving is one of the most
important steps to lowering death rates caused by car accidents. Many
people today drive recklessly and I have experienced multiple times
coming back from school, restaurants, and even a recent vacation
where a driver drifted out of his lane, as well as making turns
without a turn signal. The most common reason for this is the fact
that people are texting while driving. Most drivers do not know the
amount of danger they put themselves and others in when they look
down at a phone for a couple of seconds. Providing statistics about
death rates on the freeway will be important for drivers to fully
understand the severity of texting while driving. From 2005 – 2012,
the number of mortality rates on the freeway was between 30,000 and
45,000 deaths each year, which means we need to change the way we
drive. We can start changing by making it mandatory for new drivers
to take a drivers ed class in school.  Then, when
people get their licenses renewed, they will be required to take a
test about drivers’ safety. Completing the class will still lower
the insurance rate for students, but also be a requirement to
graduate high school. This will ensure that people know how to drive
safely and the importance of it. On the test for renewal, it will
talk about current death rates due to car accidents, the leading
causes for car accidents, consequences of being caught driving
recklessly or impaired and will include a free-response answer about
what the driver is doing to drive safely. The test’s purpose is to
remind people after high school that driving safe is still important.
Bringing about awareness is the first step in changing the problem.
There is only so much one company can do because no one can make
people drive safely, only they can, but we can encourage them to want
to change their driving habits.