I picked up Caleb from daycare and got him bucked up in his elaborate puzzle of a car seat. When I got myself situated in the car he requested that I play the rainbow song, one of his personal favorites. I am a part time nanny and was taking Caleb to his swim class. All was well until Caleb started crying because he did not want to go to swim. We were driving in the center lane on a three lane road. There was another car directly on our right. I was trying to calm him down when the right lane was slowly closing next to us and the woman in the car didn’t notice until the last second when she swerved into our lane, pushing me out into the left lane. Understandably, I was rattled. What would’ve happened if I didn’t notice her suddenly coming over? What if something had happened to Caleb? Caleb was still so upset about swimming that he failed to notice the swerve. Although he continued his persistent crying, I was glad we were ok. When we pulled up to the next light I looked at the woman who had nearly crashed into us to see that she was on her phone. I was so disappointed and promised myself that I would never be distracted on the road again. You never know when a child will be in the back of a car, and if my reckless actions were to cause an accident and kill a child I would never forgive myself. That being said, I have no idea how that lady continued to text at the light as if nothing happened.
Ever since this experience I have adopted a certain routine I think everyone should do. Not only does my way save time and allow you to plan ahead, but most importantly, it allows you to completely focus on the road even while kids or others may be trying to pull your attention from the road. I use the acronym C-A-P-I-T-A-L to remember all the steps to prepare for a safe drive.
C- Check the time and conditions. Is it rush hour? Lunch hour? Rain or snow? Take a minute to make these observations for the next step. Knowing your driving environment is crucial to preparing properly.
A- Add time to your route (if needed). Using the knowledge from the previous step, add time if traffic is busy or for extreme conditions. These are bad enough and you can make yourself worse off by not planning accordingly. Not giving yourself enough time makes any situation worse because you will find yourself fighting traffic or trying to rush it which results in dangerous speeds and maneuvers. This behavior puts yourself and others at risk of an accident.
P- Plan your route. Now that you know the conditions and whether you should add time, make sure you know where to go. Ask yourself: Is it far? Or just down the street?
I- Input your GPS. You know where you’re going, now put it in the GPS so you know how to get there. Doing this before you start the car is important. You do not want to forget about this and open your phone while driving.
T- Talk and text. This is the time to brief your passengers and (especially if they’re kids) explain to them how you want to minimize distractions. For kids, let them know what kind of behavior is allowed and what is not. After a while, you won’t need to remind them, and can skip this part. This is also your last chance to send a text. I typically text Caleb’s mom at this time to let her know where we are headed.
A- AUX it up! The ride doesn’t have to be boring and full of rules, so this is the time to agree on a playlist, so no one is upset that their song didn’t get played. This is prone to happening quite a lot with younger kids especially.
L- Load up. Double check to make sure everyone has what they need to be successful. Swim bag? Dance bag? Now you’re ready to set sail. Make sure everyone is buckled before you start moving and turn your attention to the road.
Now you have successfully completed the CAPITAL check, there should be no reason to be a distracted driver. Although I have come close to getting in an accident before using CAPITAL, I have never been in an accident. Now that I use CAPITAL, I never expect to be close to one. This system not only promotes safety but can also improve the confidence of drivers which is just as important.
Before using CAPITAL, I kept catching myself choosing a playlist or entering navigation while driving. These are tasks that should be done before anyone gets on the road. If only more people would partake in a small pre-ride check, they would be more educated on how to stay safe on the road, keeping the world a little safer.