When you think of heavy machinery, you don’t usually think of a car. Before you get behind a crane, forklift, or other type of classic heavy machinery, you need to have training to understand the machine and how it functions. You get this training to be able to safely operate said machine. A car is no different.
Before you are legally allowed to get behind the wheel, you need to go through Drivers Ed to get your learner's permit. After you get your learner's permit you can then drive in a car with someone who is over 21 years old and has held a license for at least one year. After you have driven with them for a specific amount of time, you get to go take your driving test to get your driver's license. This process ensures that you have the experience and knowledge to safely drive your motor vehicle. After this process, and you get your car, you get signed up for insurance, which helps to cover any damages from accidents or wrecks. When you don’t go through this process, you could harm yourself or others. When you don’t know how to properly operate a motor vehicle, you could get into a serious wreck.
Many steps can be taken to ensure, even when you have your license, that nobody gets hurt behind the wheel. The first thing you can do is set rules for the passengers in your car. If you set rules that make sure that you’re not distracted as you drive. The second thing you can do is make sure that your phone is put away so you don’t look at it while you’re driving. Looking at your phone can make you miss a green light, veer off the road, or hit another vehicle. The third thing you can do is not eat or drink as you drive. Eating or drinking whilst driving distracts you, which is not something you want to do behind the wheel. Waiting until you get home to eat your takeout or take a sip of your drink is a way you can avoid being distracted behind the wheel. The last thing you can do to ensure you stay alert behind the wheel is to avoid substances that can impair your judgement like drugs or alcohol. When you drink alcohol or take drugs, it can severely impair your judgement and make you see double or get tired. If you do take drugs or drink alcohol, you should order an uber or have a person as your designated driver who won’t be drinking or taking drugs. These are some steps we can take to ensure nobody gets harmed when driving.
When you’re driving, something you need to be aware of is your speed. Speed limits are set for a reason, which is to ensure nobody gets harmed by driving too fast. Once, with one of my friends, I had Google Maps up to see how long it would take for us to get home. On the highway, speeds can range from 60mph up to 75mph depending on where you’re at on the highway. On Google Maps, there is a feature that shows you the speed limit and how fast you are going compared to it. We were going over the speed limit and more than 5 or 10mph. I did tell my friends parent that we were going over the speed limit and that I wasn’t comfortable with how fast we were going. I felt that, with how fast we were going, that something could have happened and me or my friend could get hurt. My friends' parent did slow down. Speeding while driving can result in very serious accidents even if another car isn’t involved. When you’re going fast on the road, a tiny move of the wheel can result in a big movement. This paired with other vehicles on the road can result in you swerving to avoid another vehicle, which can result in hitting a different vehicle, a guard rail, a tree, or a building. Learning from my experience with another driver, I can take some steps to ensure that I and the people around me are safe when I get behind the wheel.
The steps I mentioned earlier are excellent steps to take to ensure you’re safe behind the wheel. Other steps that I can take to ensure safety when driving. Making sure that I am alert when behind the wheel by watching the road and other cars. When I’m stopped at the stoplight, I can look around at the other cars that are driving on the road to make sure nobody is running the red light before I go. Looking around and being aware of what the other drivers are doing is one way I can be safe on the road. Another way I can be safe on the road is to keep distractions low. I can do this by, of course, keeping my phone out of sight so I don’t feel compelled to look at it whilst driving. This makes sure that I don’t miss anything while I’m driving. Another thing I can do is to keep music that is playing through the radio either very low in volume, or off entirely. This step ensures that there are little to no extra sounds in the car.
Taking steps to ensure safety when in your motor vehicle, making sure you’ve gone through the proper steps to obtain a license, and staying at the posted speed limit are akin to the training you go through to operate classic heavy machinery. Whether you’re operating a forklift, or driving to work, having the proper training and being aware of safety measures is important to making sure everyone makes it home safe.