Steps Towards a Safer Drive

Drivers ed is crucial in reducing the number of deaths as a result of driving. There are more than just stop signs on the road. Being educated on driving will help you understand the roads ahead. Your driving skills will benefit and overall make it a more pleasurable ride. A national set of rules makes for safer driving conditions for all. Drivers ed helps all students learn the rules of the road in different formats. It provides a safe and supportive, hands on learning experience. Drivers ed does not only provide students with the skills to drive but an understanding of the rules that are in place to keep everyone safe.

Steps we can all take to reduce the number of deaths related to driving include: obeying traffic laws, staying focused; avoiding any distractions and driving well rested, and avoiding driving under the influence. Obeying traffic laws are simple, following these will help decrease the risk of getting into an accident. Problems arise when traffic laws are not followed. They are put in place for a reason, without them no one would have a clue on where others were going. Distractions have become a major influence in accidents over the past few years. A text is not more valuable than your own or others' lives. Trying to drive after going 24 hours without sleep is comparable to driving with a blood alcohol content of .10%, over the legal limit. Which leads me into my next point, avoiding driving under the influence. Driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol is lethal to you and others. Alcohol is a depressant, so it slows reactions, impairs judgement and your motor skills.

I personally have experienced great loss from a driving related incident. I remember, a little over two years ago, seeing on the news about a car that had been flipped over in a ditch on the side of the road. They had not identified the people in the car. I left for the gym, came home, opened the door and my sister stood in front of me. Her eyes flooded with tears. She cleared her throat and broke the news to me. It had not even crossed my mind that it could have been someone I knew. “Christian passed,” she said. I felt as if I was going to collapse. The carpeted staircase could not mask the heavy steps as I ran to my room. Three students lost their lives that day. They all had gone to my school and one of them had been a good friend of mine. It was a hard time for our whole school and community.

No one thinks it will happen to them. The truth is that accidents happen all too often. Drivers ed prepared me to be safe, confident, and responsible as a driver along with many other students. Accidents are accidents, no one means to get in one but taking these steps will lessen the risk of being involved in one.