Since getting my license about a year ago, I have heard of people around me getting in countless accidents. While all of them have not resulted in much damage or injury, it is still scary and shocking hearing about these incidents. I hear the parents of my closest friends explain how their children have been in five accidents in the past year. Five. All of them being the fault of these young drivers. Given how simple it is to stay safe on the road, these numbers shock me. Even though these incidents are mostly harmless, the potential for a fatal crash is there. These unsafe driving practices like texting or being distracted by friends are capable of causing the deaths of many people. Many people laugh it off and explain that even though there was an accident no one got hurt. They do not realize that should they continue to drive like this, there could be a fatal crash in the future. It is crucial to learn from these mistakes and make changes. It is crucial to realize and recognize the inherent dangers of driving. Most of all, it is crucial to be aware that you not only hold your safety in your hands, but the safety of other drivers around you.
When you drive recklessly or distracted, you are directly putting yourself at risk AND indirectly putting other people’s safety at risk. Validating reckless driving on the basis that if something happens you knew the risks and took it anyways, as many teenagers tend to say, is not acceptable. This is like someone riding a bike through a marathon and saying, “If I wipe out from trying to weave around runners, oh well, that’s my fault but I am going to do it anyways”. There is no consideration that when you wipe out, you will likely hit a runner. While it is not a given that this will happen, the possibility is not ruled out.
While some people I know get annoyed that most people find teenagers to be bad drivers, they must realize the accuracy in this statement. We have only been driving for a few years, and this is all the more reason to drive cautiously and carefully. We lack the experience that older drivers have and believe that just because we know how to drive means we know how to do it well. This is clearly not the case. Why is car insurance for teenagers significantly more expensive? Because of the huge number of accidents, we find ourselves in. We are not good drivers, and we need to be aware of this.
When we recognize that we are not good drivers, we will start to drive with more care. By nature, when people are aware they are not good at something or some tasks, they will complete this task with more care and less confidence. I believe that inflated confidence among teenagers in their ability to drive is a major reason for reckless driving. This is not to say I think all teens should start driving hesitantly; this causes its own issues. However, when you think you are very good at something and that you will not get hurt, you tend to do this thing with less caution and care. This is how teens drive. Now, I am not sure how to convince teens they are not good drivers, but this is where safe driving practices comes in.
Safe driving practices are the only way to keep teen drivers safe as well as other drivers on the road. If teenagers are going to be driving around with such confidence, they need to at least be doing so safely. Things like drivers’ education and in school driving education can be lifesaving. When we are learning how to drive, encouraging safe driving to the point where driving safely is automatic is the best way to keep everyone safe. While this is often not possible given that these driving programs have a limited amount of time and driving practice, any amount of safe driving education counts. When we learn and are reminded to drive safely, while we are still inexperienced, we are driving in a way that keeps us as safe as possible until experience kicks in and doubles our safety. The importance of driving safely does not need to be explained. Its ability to keep drivers, pedestrians, animals, and so many other things safe is unmatched. We need more teenagers who drive safely. When this happens, they will be safer and so will everyone else on the road.