Everyday millions of people in the United States get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle, and tragically everyday hundreds, lose their lives in motor vehicle accidents. There are a variety of reasons that these accidents occur, from driver error, to environmental conditions. Many of these accidents are preventable, and one of the best ways to reduce the number of roadway fatalities is through drivers education. Every person in the United States must take driver's education before they can begin driving on the roads. Driver education is crucial in reducing driving related deaths, it improves knowledge of traffic laws helping individuals understand and follow traffic rules, it teaches defensive driving laws helping drivers anticipate and react to potential driving hazards, emphasizes the dangers of driving while under the influence as well as distracted driving, and it encourages safe driving habits such as putting on a seatbelt and maintaining a safe speed.
While driver education does many good things, there are still many roadway deaths with it so we must think of some ways to continue to lower driving related deaths. One way we could do this would be to require continued driving education for all drivers and enforcing traffic laws more strictly. Many people disregard many traffic laws because they are under the impression that they can get away with breaking laws or feel the punishment for doing it isn’t scary enough to feel the need to avoid. These laws include driving under the influence, speed limit, and hands free driving. These are some of the leading reasons for crashes and by enforcing them more or creating better hands free driving technology in cars we could limit the number of accidents on roadways. I constantly see people driving way over the posted speed limit as well as texting and driving, and many times there are either no law enforcement around or they simply don’t do anything about it. If people breaking the law are seeing this they are going to continue to do it due to the lack of consequences but, this could lead to the greatest consequence…death.
I have experienced being in a car accident due to driving irresponsibly. I was 16 and had only had my license for a year. My mom was walking in the neighborhood and called me and asked me to pick her up. I was driving around trying to find her but couldn’t. So I looked down at my phone and tried texting her to see where she was, all of a sudden I heard a big crash and when I looked up I saw that I had run into a trashcan. Thankfully it wasn’t a major accident and no one was injured but the damage was done to my car and I realized how even looking away from the road for just a few seconds can be dangerous. Another experience I have involves my brother in law, he was driving to work one day and began to day dream. He was paying attention to the road but not focused. This caused him to not see the stoplight turn red and he ended up running it and T-boning another car. They both had minor injuries and his car was totaled but they were both able to walk away from the accident. Many people aren’t that lucky though. Both of these experiences helped me understand the dangers of driving while distracted and have helped me grow as a driver.
Even before my accident I tried my best to take steps to be a safe driver. I would put my phone away making sure to use the hands off features on my car, making sure that my passengers and I were buckled up before leaving, and making sure to always follow the speed limit. What I've learned is that all it takes is one second of inattention to change your life. Kailee Mill was a girl that went to the same high school as me, she was in the back seat of her friend's car when she unbuckled her seatbelt for a second…in that second they were involved in a car accident and Kailee tragically lost her life. All it took was one second for a family to lose their daughter, a school to lose a student, and a 16- year old to lose her life. That is the importance of drivers education to teach young people how quickly it can all change, how one decision can be the difference between life and death.