As a teenager, I could not wait to learn how to drive. It meant more freedom, where I could hang out with friends and go to fun places without having to ask my parents for a ride all the time. I’ve been driving for about 8 years now, and I still love getting in the car and knowing that I can go anywhere at any time. What I failed to realize until just recently though was that even though cars are wonderful means of transport and can provide a sense of freedom and importance to those driving them, they are also very dangerous pieces of machinery that can cause a lot of harm.
Just a few months ago, I was walking my dog with one of my best friends on a beautiful, sunny day. We had just left Dairy Queen, ice cream in hand, and were crossing a very busy intersection. I had crossed this street hundreds of times, and knew how busy it was so I always took care to look before I crossed. The light turned and the walk signal came on for us to cross and I glanced each way before stepping into the street. We were in the middle of the crosswalk when I happened to glance to my left to say something to my friend and I saw a huge black truck not 6 inches from us, and it was not slowing down. I screamed and turned to push my friend back, but in a split second the truck had struck us and then screeched to a halt. My friend and I were flung backwards onto the concrete. I was so discombobulated and shocked I stood up and didn’t even know what to do. My friend had taken the brunt of the hit, so I walked over to where she was laying and helped her stand up, we shook ourselves off and started to realize what had just happened to us. I never in my life thought that I would be hit with a car, and the gravity of the situation I think hit us both at the same time. Fortunately for my friend and I, we were pretty lucky and managed to come out of the incident with only some bruises and minor abrasions. My dog was perfectly fine too so that was a huge blessing.
This unfortunate accident that I was a part of really opened my eyes to the dangers of distracted driving, and just how powerful a vehicle can be. The man who hit us was definitely not paying attention, and had sped through a light trying to get through the intersection before it changed. I’m not sure exactly what he was doing in the vehicle, but not seeing two people and a dog in the middle of a crosswalk in broad daylight gives me the impression that he was more than likely distracted. This is why it is so important to educate drivers on the dangers of distracted driving.
I believe that reiterating to new drivers that all it takes is a split second for the environment around them to change and for there to be potential dangers on the road is absolutely vital to preparing them to be responsible and safe on the road. All new drivers have heard “no texting and driving” loads of times during driver’s education and from parents and other adults. But I think that we need to continually educate drivers even into adulthood. The man who hit my friend and I was not a young teenager who just got his driver's license. He was a middle-aged man who theoretically should have known better than to be that distracted while behind the wheel of a vehicle. Implementing continuing education for drivers would be beneficial in reiterating the rules of the road, and highlighting the dangers of not paying attention. If there was a program in place that required adults to take an online drivers ed course that reminded them of the rules of the road every 5-10 years, I think that the number of car-related deaths would drop. It can be easy to begin driving on “autopilot” when one has been driving for years, and if adults had to take a quick online assessment of their skills and knowledge of driving, say, everytime that their license expired, I believe the roads would be a lot safer.
Education is vital to success, and ensuring that everyone on the road is aware of their surroundings and the rules of driving through continual education would be of great benefit to other drivers and pedestrians alike. I know that from now on I will be very conscious of how distracted I am while on the road. I drive a lot more than the average person and take a lot of long trips by myself and I will admit, I get distracted very easily and try to eat and/or adjust my radio all the time. After my personal incident of being hit by a distracted driver, I am going to make an effort to reduce all of my distractions so that I am never the cause of an accident with another vehicle or pedestrians. I am going to keep my phone in the backseat or in my pocket where I cannot access it during driving. I am going to pull over when safe and possible if I need to eat something on my longer trips or adjust music. I do not wish on anyone what I experienced, and will continue to make a more conscious effort every time I get behind the wheel to make the roads a safer place by being one less distracted driver.