“In the Driver Seat”

                                                                      “Not innocent the Driver Seat”

  In America, an average of 34,000 people die each year as a result of driving (NHTSA, 2021)..... There are shocking but real numbers.

I was sitting in traffic and decided to look around. Other drivers on the road at a red light staring down at their phones. Nothing new. There is a boring traffic against something interesting on their phones, not an equal battle.

Distracted driving is extremely dangerous, so why do people do it again and again? Probably, because not many of them can look at their own bad habits. People are happily living in their own shells, and nobody wants to think that they could be a part of the problem.

  Horrible statistics that are available online for everyone  shared by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of NHTSA: thousands of people (specifically 34,000, according to 2021) die, and hundreds of thousands are hurt every year because of distracted driving. Unfortunately, young drivers, between 15 and 24 years, are leaders here, and get hurt the most. When I looked at these statistics, it seemed like unlabeled figures for me that applied to other people. But these other people can always become someone you love. Let’s face the truth and make the first step: admitting that everyone has a problem with distractions while driving. 

  Most likely people do not want to think about themselves in a bad way and always want to be positive. But 34,000 deaths is  a huge number, showing that everyone needs to take collective responsibility for it.

  I do not want to admit that I am a part of this issue. But unfortunately, I am not innocent in these statistics- I am using my smartphone while the car is moving. I am the latest part of a generation and I am tech savvy, with this my eyes are always glued to my phone; it is hard to leave it alone. I search for something in different apps, check my GPS map, see if the fastest routes are available, or maybe some notification that just popped up, while I am driving. I always tell myself that it only takes "one second" and that it is safe because the road is straight. But this is a dangerous lie.

  Another problem is how I react to phone notifications. Yes, I do not type a text message back, but just hearing the sound of a message makes me want to look, maybe is it something very important? Looking down at the phone to see who messaged me takes my eyes off the road for three to five seconds, and makes me forget that, actually my driving process is the most important event happening right now. If I am driving fast, that means I am moving blindly for some distance for some time. When I realized this, it was a big wake-up call for me. Meaning that my simple glances can put my life and other people's lives in danger.

  To stop these bad habits for good, I am taking two concrete actions. First, I am starting a strict "glovebox rule." I must finish all my tasks with GPS or a music playlist before I start the car. If the car starts, it is the rule that I must put my phone inside the glove compartment or inside a closed bag, because if it is harder for me to reach it, the temptation to check it weakens.

  Second, I believe that many technologies could help me stay safe. For example, there is "Do Not Disturb While Driving" mode on my phone. This automatically makes my phone silent and prevents distracting notifications. If my friends are in the car with me, I will ask the person in the front seat to be my car DJ and navigation as well so I can focus on driving.

Conclusion and the decision to make the situation better:

  It is an uncomfortable truth for me that somehow these bad habits crawled to my life, but I am trying to become better, and it is the only way I can take my first step. I need to admit that it is a problem and can bring potential danger. By keeping my phone away, I am making sure that I am safe for myself and people, and making the sad statistics of NHTSA a bit better.

These sad statistics show that we have a huge problem in our society, and everyone needs to feel a sense of responsibility for the 34,000 deaths on the road. With this approach, when everyone takes a small action to reduce this number, we can know that we did everything for the society to be safe.