This past year, my good friend and teammate experienced a nightmare I hope I never have to experience. His younger sister was involved in a life-ending car accident that not only affected his family but the entire community. Sadly, her immature decisions and poor judgement led to this irreversible disaster. Before this accident, he was a very irresponsible driver, exceeding the speed limit by 20 or 30 miles per hour. None of us wanted to drive with him, so we would do the driving to keep us safer. After the accident, he stopped driving for a few weeks, but has since started driving again and while he is a bit more cautious, he still has a long way to go.
It was a week before Thanksgiving. She quickly left home, as she was rushing to make it to work on time. The day had been drizzly rain and fog, and the roads were still wet. She was already an inexperienced, 16-year-old driver who drove too fast, and that day she also did not allow enough extra time to get to work. She was speeding on the curvy side road near her home and likely looked away at her phone (because her phone was never found at the accident scene) or maybe to change the radio, causing her to cross the double yellow line at one of the curves, resulting in a fatal head-on collision with a large dump truck. All it takes is one wrong decision on the road which can have major consequences. It really makes you think about how quickly life can be taken away. Although this incident was accidental and the result of a youthful driver’s inexperience, I believe if she had formal driver education, this death could have been avoided.
My parents both took a formal driver education class in high school when they were growing up. Driver education provides essential information about traffic laws, driving strategies, driving fundamentals, and the value of driving responsibly. This knowledge allows those behind the wheel to develop a driving habit that is alert and careful. Driver education also highlights the dangers of speeding, distractions, and intoxication while driving. This education is a crucial tool in lowering the enormous number of traffic related injuries and deaths and leads to safer roads for all to drive on and instills an attitude of accountability and awareness.
There is no mandatory, formal driver education class required in my state. All you need to do is self-study the road manual, take the online exam, and pass a basic road test in a controlled parking lot environment. The written test is easily forgotten, evidenced by the number of people who don’t signal to change lanes or turn, who drive too fast, who don’t obey proper signs, and drive very distracted. I believe a key step is mandating a formal driver education program in order to get your license. A formal driver education program could show you the consequences of failing to obey the rules of the road. It would even be great if all driver’s education programs had driving simulators because then you could feel and experience what those decisions could mean without making a fatal mistake in life. You could experience what it feels like when you are hydroplaning on a wet road, or taking a turn too fast, or driving too fast and trying to stop quickly when a car changes lanes or a person steps out into the road without looking. This could help raise a better understanding of the challenges and issues by educating people on the number of accidents that are caused by distractions and poor decisions. I believe the best way to learn is by a combination of examples, observation, and hands-on experience.
Another key step is making it harder for people to receive licenses and require re-education if they receive a ticket for speeding or reckless driving. I see so many poor drivers on the roads that create a larger chance for accidents to occur. I believe stricter education and tests should be given to keep individuals that aren’t ready to operate a motor vehicle. My friend who lost his sister had gotten a speeding ticket about a week before her accident. If he was required to take a class that also has simulations and discusses scenarios with videos showing the cause and effect of bad decisions, maybe he would not have returned to many of his poor driving habits.
One more step would be requiring certain community service requirements for repeat offenders. Today, people can choose what to do for their community service when required by the court. But I believe the punishment should relate to the “crime.” There is no learning when someone drives drunk, drives distracted or recklessly, or speeds excessively chooses to help in a community garden or some other volunteer activity that is not related to the consequences of poor driving. Requiring their service to be at a hospital or rehab center where they see the recovery of people who were in accidents could make a bigger impact and understanding of their decisions and actions. This type of service could make drivers more accountable for their decisions and actions by directly showing these safety concerns.
While I do try not to speed or be distracted while driving, I do know that I need to be a more patient driver. When people are driving below the speed limit, jump out in front of me, fail to use a turn signal and other bad decisions, I get angry instead of just taking a deep breath and staying focused on the fact that nothing worse happened. I need to be a better role model for those who ride with me. By being a more responsible and patient driver, I will encourage my friends and family to do the same. I will also try and educate those on the importance of safe driving and hold those accountable for improper driving by addressing their wrongdoings.
I pray for all the families that have been affected by driving related incidents, including my teammate and his family, and hope more people will help encourage the overdue change to help end these events.