Crosses by a County Road

Dangerous
Driving isn’t Worth It

Samantha
Westfahl, North Park High School

By county road 12W, a small
wooden cross marks the spot where three North Park students died in a
car accident because of reckless driving. These three students are
commemorated on a memorial plaque in front of our school. This
accident is remembered as a tragedy, and their deaths impacted the
entire community. Drivers ed is a critical part of reducing
driving deaths around the US, not just North Park.

Educating
drivers on the dangers of driving is important. People cannot be safe
drivers if they are unaware the dangers. This can be done through
public service announcements on social media. A study by Pew Research
Center shows 69% of adults in the US use Facebook (Perrin and
Anderson). According to the National Safety Council, 38,800 people
died in car accidents in 2019 (National Security Council). This
frightening number may encourage people to drive safer if information
is widely disseminated on social media.

Another
step to reduce the number of traffic deaths is educating people on
what is safe driving. Practically everyone knows the dangers of
texting and driving and drinking and driving; but they may not other
dangerous aspects of driving. The number of traffic deaths can be
accompanied by tips for safe driving and warnings about specific
dangers of driving. This will educate people about the risks and ways
to mitigate them. Once people understand these dangers and solutions,
the solutions can be implemented while driving. This will make our
roads safer and reduce the number of traffic fatalities.

I am a good driver, but I can
always be safer. One important step I can take before and while
driving is clearing my head to focus on driving. I am easily
distracted when if not fully focused on something. By clearing my
head and choosing to focus on driving, I will be more aware of my
actions and those of other drivers. I have a great motivator to drive
safely. My dad is a firefighter, and I am close to the firefighters
on the department. I do not want to be the body they pull out of a
car accident. For a class I created an infographic relating the
statistics of distracted and impaired driving among teens in the US.
This project not only informed me on the terrifying statistics of
driver deaths, but my classmates as well. I am dedicated to safe
driving. In less than a year I will join the local fire department,
and I do not want to be on the scene of another tragic accident that
ends with crosses next to a county road.

Works Cited

Perrin,
Andrew and Monica Anderson. “Social media usage in the U.S. in
2019 | Pew Research Center.” Pew
Research Center | Pew Research Center. 10
Apr 2019. Web. 27 Mar 2020.
<http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/04/10/share-of-u-s-adults-using-social-media-including-facebook-is-mostly-unchanged-since-2018/>.

National
Security Council, . ” Fatality Estimates.” National
Safety Council – Our Mission is Safety. 2020.
Web. 27 Mar 2020.
<http://www.nsc.org/road-safety/safety-topics/fatality-estimates>.