When I was ten years old I was in the front seat of my dad's truck when we got into a car accident. My mother was driving that day. She was under the influence of drugs when the collision happened. We crashed into a large light pole going about thirty five miles an hour. That day really made me question the way people choose to drive. It made me think that I could have made a better choice of getting in the car with her or not. If I would have found a different way to get there it would have never happened. You have to question things before you do them or else it can make a major impact on your life. There have been plenty of occurrences that have made me think about how some people just don’t take others into consideration while driving. I have been in many situations where I have had to tell a friend or family member to drive more responsibly. Some people just do not understand the consequences of driving irresponsibly. They think that their life is the only one on the line when it comes to driving in which case it is not.

There are many different things people could do in order to make everyone else including themselves safer on the road. One of the major things that can show people to become better and safer drivers on the road is showing them all the lives that they affect when driving irresponsible. I was a part of an event called teen maze. At this event parents and loved ones talked about losing someone in an automobile accident. This really touched me because I would never want to be put through a tragedy like that. I think that making everyone sit through one of these may not affect all but it will at least help one person to learn the big impact of it all. Another thing as a driver or passenger that you could do is limit all the distractions from the road. When you are driving, don't have your phone within reach. If there is an emergency, you still don’t have it where you can grab it while driving, pull over and then handle the phone or whatever else you need to do. These two things could make a major difference if everyone would just follow them. I think that knowing the trauma you can put people through by grabbing a phone while driving or driving under the influence can help people take a bigger step in becoming safer drivers.

When I think of driver's education I think of a lesson that teaches us the rights and wrongs of driving. Driver's education plays a very big role in someone getting their license. You have to complete this before ever taking the drivers test. When you are taking these lessons you are learning the laws and standards of driving. These courses teach you how to drive defensively against other drivers. When I say drive defensively I mean that you learn to be more aware of your surroundings. After learning these things you know the legal rules of driving and you know what can and maybe will happen if you drive irresponsibly. Knowing all of this you have an emotional push in your brain before making and dumb decision on the road. The main thing in learning all of this, is you learn the big overall consequences of driving recklessly. I believe that without this amazing course there would be so many more tragedies and catastrophes.

Every year more than 38,000 people die from reckless driving in the United States. This is something that is always going to happen but there are ways we could reduce that number. One of the big things in my mind is having more tests and requirements to get your driver's license. I believe that we should have a weather driving test because for someone like me that lives where it is always hot and we never get cold weather. When we had it snow years ago, no one knew how to drive in it and there were multiple wrecks. I also think that we should have a required amount of time that a driving instructor has to ride with us in the car and give us tips on what we are and are not doing right. One other step I think should be taken is having more visible officers on the road. There are most of the time officers hiding on the side of the roads which is smart in some situations but when you do see the cop you slow down and drive responsibly. Furthermore there are plenty of things we could do to make the road a safer and more comfortable place. It just takes teamwork and effort.