Driver education is a fundamental step in earning the privilege of driving a car or other motor vehicle as it helps to create a more alert and cautious driving population that is equipped with the knowledge necessary to deal with any challenges they may experience in their time as drivers. I live in the state of Illinois where it is required that high school students’ complete drivers ed instruction both in the classroom and behind the wheel with the school driving instructor. Teens are also required to maintain a log of their time spent practicing driving with parents requiring a minimum of 50 hours spent driving with at least 10 hours driving at night. This process may seem long and tedious to many teens eager to get their first taste of freedom behind the wheel, but the extra amount of time and attention put into training teens to drive safely is the difference between arriving home safe after a fun night out or spending the night in the emergency room. I remember showing up to my traffic appointments at my local high school on Saturday mornings and joining a group of students in the driver’s education vehicle as each took their turn driving around the surrounding neighborhoods. I vividly remember the anxiety I felt as another girl had trouble making accurate turns often overturning in traffic and being grateful that my dad had put in the extra time each Sunday morning letting me practice on quiet streets. It also reminded me how important it was for teens to go through driver education as not all teens are fortunate enough to have a parent to patiently correct them.
While driver education programs help introduce teens to the rules of the road and how to drive safely many people relax their adherence to these rules as they become more comfortable. I often see this occur around my neighborhood as drivers frequently go above the 20mph speed limit for residential streets, do rolling stops, or simply run through the stop sign. This is especially frustrating as there is small park across the street from my home which parents bring their children to. There are often children crossing the street or others playing on scooters and skateboards on the street in front of the park. Yet despite clearly posted signs warning of children at play I have seen drivers repeatedly roll through stop signs at times not even looking to see if a person or other car is approaching the intersection. I myself have had encounters with such drivers while supervising my younger brother as he played on his scooter, and I followed behind him on my skateboard to watch out for trouble. Many people often think that they are unlikely to get into an accident on roads that they drive on everyday and become too comfortable causing them to make reckless mistakes. As I was practicing driving with my dad one Sunday morning I narrowly missed a collision with another driver at the intersection I was about to stop at. I was approaching the intersection on the residential street to turn to my house and began to slow to a stop just as a woman sped up and turned through the intersection toward me without stopping or checking the intersection for approaching vehicles. A collision was avoided as I had been slowing down far away enough from the stop sign so that each of us could brake before she hit me, and I watched her back up in shame. These incidents have always frustrated me and reminded me that driving is a privilege rather than a right many people seem to take for granted as one must constantly be aware of their surroundings and consider the great amount of pain they can inflict on pedestrians and fellow drivers even when driving around their quiet neighborhood.
To prevent these types of accidents I believe that it would be beneficial to force drivers to make full stops at stop signs by placing speed bumps at the ends of street corners. While cameras on major avenues often prevent drivers from speeding due to knowing they would receive a ticket, placing cameras at the intersections of residential streets would likely be too costly and additional speed bumps could be used instead. In addition to remaining alert to your surroundings it is important to have a well-maintained vehicle. This would include having the appropriate tires for the weather conditions and having functioning lights for viewing the rode and signaling. Knowing the capabilities of your vehicle and considering the road and weather conditions are essential to preventing an accident. These are all things that I do to ensure that when I turn on my car, I am setting myself up to have a safe drive. In addition, I keep my phone on do not disturb during the duration of my drive so as not to be tempted to multitask. I hope that drivers will remember that driving is a privilege that requires great attention and responsibility.