‘Speed thrills but kills’ was the big poster that we had just passed by the city on our way West to go attend a burial. I happened to have glanced at the poster as we exited the main highway and sped past the escarpments on a long narrow route home. I am not sure someone else in the car did, especially my brother who was the driver and knew we had more than five hours on the road before we could get home, to a burial of my maternal grandma. My affinity for reading had made me glance over it and ponder on it for a moment before pushing the thoughts to the back of my mind as the five of us in the car, who were all siblings, engaged in stories of our childhood and the nitty gritty of life since although we all were in the same city, we were scattered across different regions, some of us studying while older siblings were married and working.
And the stories continued in a happy mood until we were two hours on the road, happy and giggling in the car, that the lives of the five of us almost got scattered. There are a few unwritten rules on the road and one of them is that you can literally find any driver headed your way and if you believe your car has enough horsepower to race theirs, you could compete on the road, with a total stranger!
That is what happened. There is just some code in men that allows them to race without most ladies realizing there is competition on the road. I noticed my brother racing against a Subaru and this had been going on for close to an hour. As to whether my sister and my brother’s wife had noticed this, I doubt because they were in their own world, jogging their minds with memories and talking about the who is who in the celebrity world.
Hold your breath because the next ten seconds were the most terrifying of my life. It was a narrow, two-lane road, where overtaking meant veering into the path of oncoming traffic. My brother, driven by either courage or recklessness, saw a fleeting opportunity to outpace his newfound competitor, who was about 100 meters ahead, having just passed us moments earlier.
Seizing what he perceived as an advantage, my brother pulled out into the opposite lane, engaging his turbo for a rapid overtake. The road ahead seemed clear as we drew level with the other driver. But in that instant, my brother realized the grave mistake he had made. The realization hit us hard—an incoming vehicle was hurtling toward us, and there was no way back.
Incoming was a roaring 70-seater bus, hurtling towards us at a terrifying 80 miles per hour. Our lane was cluttered with vehicles, leaving the bus with nowhere to go. The seconds stretched into an eternity as the bus bore down on us, the air thick with the chilling screams of horror and impending doom. We braced for impact, convinced we were about to become another tragic statistic of road accidents caused by reckless speeding. Just when it seemed all hope was lost, the bus's emergency brakes engaged with a deafening screech. The behemoth came to a halt merely inches from us, stopping barely 2 meters away from where my brother had slammed his emergency brakes. In that heart-stopping moment, we were miraculously spared from the brink of disaster.
Driver education plays a very crucial role in reducing the number of deaths from road accidents. My brother might have conducted himself better had he had better education on the road. Drivers are on the steering wheel and they hold the lives of the other passengers in their hands. Therefore, driver education ensures that the drivers fully understand the traffic laws and regulations and therefore they are able to navigate the roads legally and safely. Also, if drivers are equipped with safe driving skills such as how to control the vehicle properly and defensive techniques of driving, they are less likely to be involved in road accidents. I applaud my brother on his part of proper vehicle control cause had he failed to engage the emergency brakes, I would not be here to tell the story. Lastly, driver education also highlights the risky behaviors and if drivers understand these risks, they are likely to avoid them.
To reduce the number of deaths related to driving, the following are some of the steps that can be taken;



Carrying out public awareness campaigns to let drivers know about the consequences of reckless and impaired driving


Youths are the ones mostly involved in accidents, they should be targeted with responsible driving messages through social media, the institutions they study and the entertainment joints they frequent


The state and federal government has a duty to protect its citizens. The majority of the accidents are caused by drunk drivers. Positioning law enforcement officers at the exits of drinking and entertainment joints and them measuring alcohol levels of drivers before allowing them to hit the road might reduce the road accidents


With increased technology and artificial intelligent (AI) technologies, cars that are over speeding can be mapped out and highway or traffic police alerted of the same and issue warnings to the same drivers. Consequently, I look forward to a future where autonomous cars will be able to move at just the right speed and prevent cars from engaging in road accidents.


Enforcing the traffic laws strictly with the help of traffic cameras and license plate recognition technology


At a personal level, to be a better and safer driver as well as to help others become safer on the road, I will always do the following;



Take a cab home when going out partying or drinking with friends


Never allowing my drunk friends to drive


Keeping to the speed limit always


Calling out my friends when they are over speeding on the road


Reporting over speeding cars to the authorities. 911 is free!


I am here as a lesson to others and I will always drive with caution and keeping to the speed limit. Speed might thrill you but it is not until you are on that hospital bed unable to walk again, if you are lucky, that you start saying the bitter words ‘I wish…’
May we find thrill in driving under the speed limit and safe driving before over speeding kills us