Strategies for Eliminating Unsafe Driving

I believe that far too many people die from poor driving habits, whether it is they themselves who drove poorly or another driver who endangered others. Drivers ed is integral to keeping our roads safe, as it only lets good drivers get on the road—well, at least it should. I believe that to be most effective, rigorous drivers ed should be necessary before a permit or license can be granted. In addition, I think that every so often, people should have to retake a driving test to ensure they are still fit to drive.

Driving responsibly requires a great deal of concentration and attention. So many factors interact on the road, including other drivers, the weather, and sometimes pedestrians or even animals. A good driver must be able to pay attention to all of these simultaneously, scanning for threats and adapting to changing circumstances. Some people, unfortunately, are incapable or unwilling to do this. Therefore, the role of drivers ed is to, if possible, teach people how to pay full attention on the road. In a classroom setting, this might be difficult to do, and in a real car on the road, the student could endanger others if they are not yet fully prepared. One possible solution to this is to use virtual and augmented reality simulations that will not put anyone else in danger, before moving up to real driving.

Fortunately, I have never been in a car accident, and my friends and family all drive pretty responsibly. However, I do think that there are some people in my community who are not very safe drivers. I think that one way I could help others be safer drivers is to put out signs and other indicators to encourage safe driving. I could also try to lead by example and show others what safe driving looks like, which means that I will need to continue learning about being a safe driver. A more forceful strategy that might work would be to require retaking the driving test every so often, to make sure people stay in line. Given the seriousness of the problem at hand, I believe that this administrative action may be the most effective course. Unsafe drivers are out there, and it will probably take government-sized effort to keep them off the streets.