Perilous Privilege

“Well, I guess we’re going to be stuck here for a while,” sighs my mom as she glances into the side-view mirror, watching the lineup form down the street. “There must be an accident blocking the road ahead,” my dad responds in a matter-of-fact tone. Outside, I hear raindrops patter as they strike the windshield, sticking there only briefly before the wipers glide across the windshield, wiping them away. Time passes. The pattering intensifies. Sheets of rain cloak the cars around us. BAM! Suddenly, our car jolts. I feel my seat belt tighten across my chest as I am jerked into the side of the car. Then silence.

Each year, 34,000 people die from automobile accidents; that’s more than 90 people per day. 34,000 is the number of people that should be inhabiting a small town, not the number of fatalities from an ever-day activity.

Driving is inherently dangerous; you are operating a massive metal machine while travelling at high speeds. However, there are rules put in place to keep people safe. Starting before you first get behind the wheel, you should become familiar with these safety regulations to ensure the safest possible driving experience for you, your fellow drivers, passengers, and pedestrians alike.

But why? Imagine a world without rules. People would be free to completely ignore the lines, signs, and traffic signals. As you can imagine, that would be utterly chaotic. For this reason, laws exist to dictate which side of the road to be on, which lane to travel in, how fast to drive, etc. Other laws ban certain distractions such as being under the influence or using your phone. Additionally, some laws require precautions such as having working brake lights and wearing seatbelts. These traffic laws or “rules-of-the-road” have been set to promote safety. However, for these laws to effectively protect, drivers need to be aware of them.

That’s where drivers’ education comes in. Not only does drivers ed bring familiarity to the legality of safe driving; it also brings awareness to various other safety precautions. For example, though it’s not illegal to eat while driving, it can be very distracting and cause you to lose focus on the road. Even a split-second of shifted attention could be long enough for you to drift into oncoming traffic or miss a stop sign. Similarly, it’s not illegal to drive while you are exhausted, but drowsy driving can cause you to lose focus frequently, which may result in catastrophic outcomes, including death.

It’s a fact: driving is a dangerous activity, but it doesn’t have to be a deadly one. By increasing awareness of laws and potential distractions, the number of distracted drivers can be reduced. Reducing the number of distracted drivers will reduce the number of driving errors made, thus resulting in fewer collisions. Fewer collisions mean fewer deaths. To summarize, the ultimate consequence of educating drivers is a reduction in the number of deaths caused by car accidents.