Driver Education Initiative – Privilege comes with Danger

Privilege Comes with Dangers

In
society, many people expect that at the age of 16 you do what every
other teenager does, and that is you start driving. However, many
people do not realize the privilege that they have that they even
have this opportunity. Most people cannot afford the expenses that
comes with having a car and the fact that many people are careless
drivers is unacceptable. It took me a long time to realize this, but
once I did it showed me that I need to be more aware of the way that
I drive because I could put my own life and other people’s lives in
danger. I used to drive recklessly because I used to have the
mentality that “I would never get into an accident”. As a
teenager, many people view themselves as invincible and that they are
capable of doing anything. While, this is a good mentality to have in
some cases this is not true when it comes to driving. I remember one
day, my mom sat me down at the dinner table and told me how
privileged I was that she was able to buy my first car for me and
give me the opportunity that many other teenagers have. However, she
also told me that most people do not live the life that I do and that
I need to drive responsibly because behind the wheel I am responsible
for someone’s life.

With this being said, it is essential that
drivers ed is available to everyone behind the wheel
especially when reducing the number of deaths because it makes people
more aware of the harsh realities of driving. Driving education
taught me the dangers of driving and the precautions that I should
take. Having
the knowledge of the rules of the road and learning how to
operate
a car under the supervision of a trained expert decreases the
chances
of a fatal accident occurring. While there are many steps to reduce
the number of deaths from
driving,
it is essential that the driver knows how to operate the vehicle.
Also, even though, the leading cause of fatal car accidents is from
texting and driving there needs to be a way where the driver is only
capable of making an emergency phone call when in need. Drivers
should not be allowed to use their phones while driving and thus,
there should be ways to limit their ability to use their cellphones,
only while driving.

Ever
since, having a serious talk with my mom I changed the way I drive. I
also make my friends aware of the dangers of driving, especially when
I am in the car with them while they are on their phones. Even
though, they get annoyed at me for calling them out for their
behavior they know that I do it out of love because I do not want
them to hurt themselves or others. If you have the ability to make
someone aware of the dangers of driving then you should do it because
even though people, are aware of them they continue to act the same
way until one day it affects them personally. Even though, I
personally do not know anyone whose death was caused by driving, I
know many people who have been in minor car accidents. Most of the
time this was due to the ignorance of the other driver, but driver’s
education would have prevented this. Overall, if you are privileged
enough to have a car of your own and take yourself to places then you
should take the extra steps to make yourself a safe driver because
you have your own life and someone else’s life in the palm of your
hands.