In the Driver’s Seat: Responsibility, Awareness, and Saving Lives on the Road

      For most teenagers, finally getting into the driver's seat at age 16 is the ultimate symbol of growing up. It's freedom, independence and a sign of maturity. But the act of stepping into the driver's seat goes way beyond ourselves – the passenger sits in a car that weighs thousands of pounds going at breakneck speeds, and their safety, and the safety of all other travellers and strangers is now in your hands. To truly commemorate that responsibility, we need to remember that driver education, safety standards, personal responsibility and leadership in our communities are all essentials to prevent tragedies on the road.

      Driver education is the most critical first line of defense in eliminating traffic fatalities. Never should a driver's license be regarded as a mere administrative task without the basic fundamental knowledge and comprehension of the road, the driver, the hazard anticipation and the legal ramifications. Appropriate driver education takes high risk inexperienced drivers and moves them toward an understanding of being conscious and defensive drivers. It does not necessarily teach drivers how to parallel park or how to make a turn signal; it teaches them the mechanics of knowing when to make a turn signal or how close a car may be behind you when someone else takes a turn or how a corner might hold an excess of dry weather spray. It shows them the importance of knowing their space, reaction times and the physics of brakes when traveling a hundred miles per hour and looking ahead to anticipate driver reaction.

      A comprehensive approach-including roads and speed management improvements, laws to help stop driving after drinking or using drugs, and cutting-edge vehicle safety technology-is needed to reverse the number of traffic deaths. Preventing distracted and impaired driving is crucial. Driver distraction-particularly social media and text messaging-is now an all-consuming epidemic among drivers. Strong, primary laws against portable-device use combined with automated enforcement (such as red-light cameras) make an enormous difference. While we know people are going to drink, responsible organizations and communities also can promote zero-tolerance drug-driving policies and cut the temptation and opportunities by providing alternative transportation options. Traffic-calming infrastructure in places with higher population density-including roundabouts, narrowing lanes, raised crosswalks and lowered speed limits in neighborhoods-is proven to reduce vehicle speeds. Lowering your vehicle's speed five miles per hour increases your chances of surviving a crash with a pedestrian. And automated vehicle safety features-including emergency-braking and lane-departure controls-are a proven backup when human error prevails.

      Witnessing the realities of road danger is seldom recorded in textbooks and manuals, but instead learned from experience. Like many young drivers, I've driven alongside friends and peers who seem more concerned with texting and checking notifications than the road ahead. I remember sitting in the passenger seat while my friend drove through a congested highway multi-lane, all while we joked about her constant distraction on her phone. Each time she was fixated on her phone for a couple of seconds, we would drift slightly away from the lane edge and back. That experience ended safely, but not without leaving me with the realization that seemingly harmless habits can make the difference between a safe ride and a fatal crash. The fact that she was joking about our driving distractions made me realize that nothing is truly routine when it comes to safe driving.

      These guidelines help me to be a better driver and a thoughtful contributor to a culture of safety-each of them is a conscious choice I make every time I get in a car. To keep my driving safer, I have a clean interior in order to minimize distractions from gadgets and music: right before I shift out of Park, I set my navigation GPS, turn on climate control, queue my music playlist, and either stow or turn off my phone-regardless of the "Do Not Disturb While Driving" setting. I am cautious and considerate of my surroundings, drive a three-to-four-second following distance from a car in front of me, scan at cross-street intersections before I drive through a green light, and never feel tempted to hit the road before I'm feeling up to it.

More than just my own bad decisions, I have a duty to steer those around me away from poor choices. In the car, that might mean taking the wheel if someone is driving recklessly, or politely petitioning to switch places so they can rest. If I always wear my seat belt, always follow the posted speed limit, always treat other drivers with respect, I believe I will encourage safe habits in others.

      Being in control of a vehicle is a privilege that should always be respected. We know that traffic-related deaths are not just random accidents; they are mostly predictable incidents that always involve human choices. We can drastically cut down on these preventable tragedies by putting serious driver training and more safety-oriented legislation into effect and taking responsibility for our own actions while behind the wheel today.