3,287 Deaths and How to Diminish Them

Kerigan Mardis

Driver Education Initiative

10 January 2020

3,287 Deaths and How to Diminish Them

Picture this, an eight-wheel cement cement truck is barrelling towards you at fifty-five miles per hour, and you are sitting still waiting to turn left into your driveway. However, you cannot turn yet because there is oncoming traffic. Scary scenario right? Well, that is exactly where I was. My two siblings were in the back seat. The man driving the truck was looking down at his phone; he was going to hit us. I immediately began contemplating whether I should drive in the ditch, or turn left anyway and risk hitting the car that was oncoming. I decided to just drive straight, so that he could swerve around me, and when he realized that I was there, that is what he did. He almost intercepted the car that was coming from the other direction, and he scraped the entire driver side of mine. We were okay, but about 3,287 Americans were not so lucky that day or any day for that matter. According to www.asirt.org, that is the number of Americans that die everyday due to automobile accidents. Reducing this number can be done by doing several things.

The first step to decreasing the amount of deaths due to driving is adhering to traffic laws. If someone is following all traffic laws, it is really hard for an accident to be their fault. When we drive the speed limit, drive undistracted, and obey traffic signs, we create safer driving conditions for ourselves and others. Another step is educating drivers. Adequate drivers ed is so important; how can someone follow traffic laws that they are unaware of? Also, good drivers ed can go beyond just basic traffic rules. While eating and driving tired are not against the law, they can distract an automobile operator tremendously. Each and every driver needs to be informed of things that can impair their driving. Additionally to taking these steps, there are a couple of things you and I can do while driving to decrease our risk of having an accident.

To drive safer you should maintain your vehicle, drive defensively, and only operate a vehicle when you are in a good state. To keep your car in good shape, you should have regular oil-changes, tune-ups, and tire rotations done. Also, when it comes to driving defensively, my grandmother always told me to “pretend like every car was going to hit me.” Be ready for someone to run a red light or pull out in front of you. Lastly, if you are not feeling well physically or mentally, you should not drive. Either one of those things could hinder you from driving safely.

Thousands of car accidents happen everyday; due to these accidents several people lose their lives. In order to diminish the number of driving related deaths, we need to stay educated, obey traffic laws, and take steps necessary to keep ourselves out of situations like mine.