Driver's Safety

Imagine that you’ve been chained to the ground in a cave with nothing but darkness enveloping you. The only thing you’ve ever seen, ever experienced, is a wall in front of you. This analogy, infamously known as Plato’s “Allegory of the cave”, can be used to paint a picture of the condition of someone without education. Having no knowledge, the person’s perspective of the world is relegated to that tiny section of the cave. This is why education is so important; it allows one to grasp concepts and ideas that would otherwise never occur to you. With life and death topics such as driving, being fully educated on the issue is thus extremely important so that you are not “left in the dark” about driver’s safety. This can be displayed with the fact that, according to a study done by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, young individuals who don’t complete drivers ed are 75 percent more likely to receive a ticket and 24 percent more likely to be involved in a fatal accident. Drivers ed thus helps considerably in reducing the number of deaths on the roadway.

Drivers ed, however, is only the tip of the iceberg in making our roads safer and less deadly. According to a study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 70 percent of all motor vehicle crashes are a result of stop sign violations at intersections. This is a considerable chunk of accidents that could be prevented by structurally changing how the U.S. designs its intersections. In the U.K. instead of four way stops, roundabouts are used, studies by the Federal Highway administration finding that they reduced injury by 75 percent, overall collisions by 35 percent, and fatality collisions by 90 percent. Advocating and voting for the construction of more roundabouts is thus a way that accidents and deaths can be reduced.

Stopping these deaths can also be tackled from an individualistic perspective. The accident that I was in, for example, happened due to my father being very tired. In this circumstance I wasn’t wearing a seatbelt and subsequently nearly broke my nose on the seat in front of me. In addition to now being that friend who makes sure everyone is buckled up before even starting the car, I try not to drive whenever I feel sleepy or exhausted. As it turns out, the National Highway Traffic Administration estimates that about 6,000 fatal crashes a year are caused by drowsy drivers. If I know I am not feeling fit to drive I usually ask a friend to drive me where I need to be. I also do the same for my friends if I know they have pulled an all-nighter for an exam. To minimize any distractions, I will put my phone on silent as well as lessen my talking when I or others are driving. It is in these ways that I believe the number of deaths can be reduced, in order to make driving a safe and efficient activity for everyone.