The Impact of Irresponsible Driving

Learning to drive when you turn a certain age is one of the most impactful moments in a young person's life. When I was first learning the rules of the road I never realized how important being aware of your surroundings was. It wasn't until I took on the road by myself for the first time when I came to the understanding that driving is a serious matter. Though driving is a part of everyone’s life and is seen as mundane and normal, it can turn into a dangerous situation if it is not taken seriously. When I finally got my license at the tender age of 16, I thought I knew everything there was to know about driving. It wasn’t until I got into my first car accident while having people in the car with me that I took into consideration that I have to be extremely careful while behind the wheel. While driving with three other people in my vehicle I was highly distracted; I had my music turned onto the highest volume, I was not looking in my mirrors, and I had my phone in my hand. All 3 of these factors were a recipe for disaster. As I was driving I decided to speed through a yellow light because I thought I would be able to make it before the light turned red. While speeding through the yellow light, another car that I did not see driving came and hit the back of my car, which sent my vehicle into a spin. As my car was spinning I was thinking to myself about how I could have avoided this entire situation if I was watching the road and was not trying to show off my new driving skills to my friends. When my car finally stopped spinning I checked the backseat to see if my friends were fine. Thankfully they were ok and they did not have any major ailments. Distracted driving does nothing but put innocent people in harm's way. This car accident made me see that even though I earned my driver's license and passed my driver's education course, I still was not a proficient or experienced driver yet and I still had more to learn. From that moment on I make sure to drive the speed limit, to keep my music at a reasonable level, and to keep my phone away from me while driving. According to "Personal Injury San Diego" (https://www.personalinjurysandiego.org), in 2020, 90% of car crashes are caused by teenagers (15-20) who have not taken drivers education courses, and teens are ten times more likely to be in fatal car crashes than adults. According to Geico and its published teenage driving statistics, 25% of 16-year-old drivers are in a car accident during their first year of driving. The percentage of teenage driving accidents is slightly lower with older teenagers. I think that the most common teen car accidents involve turning left, rear-end crashes, and running off the road. Teenagers need to be more cautious of how they are driving and how it could impact others.