Driver's Safety

Drivers ed is vital in reducing the number of deaths due to driving. Each day around 90 people die in a car crash. Being a teenager, one statistic that really hit my heart was 8,000 people ages 16-20 are killed each year due to a car crash. Every school needs to introduce a mandatory drivers safety class that would teach students all the types of distracted driving, how to stay focused, and how to drive in various types of weather. While some students go through a driver’s education program, they do not remember all the information learned in this class. This is why it needs to be reinforced in their minds because repetition results in memorization. With more classes on driver safety, the amount of teenagers that die every year in car crashes will decrease. This means more memories, more fun, and fewer funerals. No parent ever wants to receive the phone call that his or her child was killed in an accident. Therefore, the more we know about dangerous or distracted driving the better we can combat it. I am lucky enough to have never been in a car crash, although I have had multiple close calls. Whether it was driving to fast on icy roads, or losing control on new gravel, anytime my car is out of my control I fear of what will happen next. Similarly, I have seen friends and family driving while using the phone and this is something I strongly disagree with. I know the consequences of looking at my phone while driving and I will not take that chance. I also remind my mom, dad, or friends that I can text for them while they are driving, so they can stay focused on the road. This is one way I try to keep my loved ones and myself safe. Another way my family stays safe on the road is, we remind each other to drive safe in bad weather and watch for animals, such as deer, if we’re driving at night. A reminder before leaving the house could save someone’s life and all families and friends should do this. Along with reminders to drive safe, people who are out having a night of fun and decide to have drinks should make sure to have a designated driver or plan to have a driving service pick them up. Forty percent of car accidents are due to drunk drivers and this is easily avoided. If a person knows that their vision, awareness, or decision-making skills are impaired then all they need to do is pick up their phone and call for a ride. Removing this 40% of crashes would reduce yearly car crashes from 40,000 in the United States to 24,000. That means 16,000 more people would get to continue living every year. Safe driving is not something that should be suggested, it should be enforced and individuals, schools, and communities should all work to take action against unsafe driving.