Imagine minding your own business, sitting in the car until, suddenly, there is glass everywhere and screams fill the silence. I was sitting in the back seat of my aunt’s red truck singing my favorite song with my little cousins, who were 3 and 7 years old, when a small Toyota Corolla T-boned us. We had the green light in the intersection, and out of nowhere this car rammed into the door on my side of the truck. The window shattered and my little cousins immediately started screaming in fear.
When we got out of the car to assess the damage and to call for help, I looked over at the driver of the Toyota Corolla. All of the people in the car were teenagers. I can only imagine what they were doing to cause the driver to ignore the traffic lights and road signs, resulting in them crashing into us.
Teenagers struggle with many distractions while on the road, such as their phones, the radio, music, friends in the backseat, and emotions from conversations they engaged in before getting in the car. Cell phones are one of the biggest distractions since they are so easy to turn on and enter any app while driving. Even touching the phone is hazardous since it requires the driver to take their eyes off the road for a short period of time, in which anything can happen. The same danger comes with messing with the radio or choosing what song will play next. Friends in the backseat can be distracting if they do not behave properly and respect boundaries of the driver. No one should be driving while feeling any type of emotions, good or bad. These can cloud the drivers’ processing time, cause them to make irrational decisions, or make them believe they are indestructible.
Before they start driving, teenagers need to learn the impact their actions have on the road. Their actions can cause people to lose their lives and cause others to develop road rage or they could make the roads a safer place by looking out for pedestrians and following all laws. In order to ignore all distractions while driving, teenagers must turn off their phones and put them away where they cannot see them. They should also keep a clear head while driving that is free from any emotions, good or bad. Before driving their friends, teen drivers should set clear boundaries that state the maximum volume the music should be, how loud voices should be, in addition to making it clear they should not tell the driver how to drive or what to do. These steps can prevent many reckless accidents from happening.
The road is the most dangerous place to be. All drivers make it more dangerous than airplanes, the ocean, any type of weapon, and all other dangerous things. Drivers can never predict what others will do, therefore, are unable to react quickly enough before something happens. Since current society allows teenagers to start driving at 15.5, driver’s education needs to emphasize how dangerous it is. Teenagers need to understand that a car is a weapon that needs to be handled carefully at all times.
Driver's education can provide all the rules of the road and how to be a defensive driver, but it still will not make teenagers be safe one hundred percent of the time; that is where parents and schools come in. Parents and teachers should constantly emphasize the responsibility that comes with driving. Parents should have long discussions about it with their teenager, starting before the teenager even starts learning to drive. Schools should offer driver’s education to all students who already passed the test, but want to refresh their memory on some rules. Communities need to host monthly meetings open for everyone in the community to attend, which gives reminders to everyone on how to be a defensive driver.
When I started driving, I was very cautious of everything since my parents had it engrained into my head how dangerous driving is and the responsibility that comes with getting behind that wheel. On the other hand, my younger sister is the complete opposite of me. She never took what my parents said into consideration, therefore she does not care as much. When/if she gets into an accident, we will know why. Unfortunately, some teenagers need to experience something bad themselves before they realize the impact they have on the road. That should not be the case, though. If all teenagers had her mindset, the roads would be even more dangerous than they are today, with even more fatalities. Driver’s education, the actions of parents, and the encouragement of the community is crucial to ensure the roads are safe for everyone.