It
was the day before Thanksgiving, and I was headed home after a long
day of school, thinking about what to pack for our annual visit with
my grandparents. As I looked out my windshield, I was surprised to
find my car was sitting in the incoming turn lane, and my hood was
crumpled like an old piece of foil. I remember I had been eating a
granola bar—I was extremely hungry after completing a hard workout
at track conditioning. My sister had been talking on the phone with
my mom from the passenger seat, jotting down a list of items she
wanted us to pick up from the store on the way home. As a I sat
nervously watching cars race past me at lightning speed down the busy
street, I realized I could not remember if I had had the green light.
Ultimately, the accident was not my fault—the driver had run the
red light and was also unlicensed and uninsured. However, I could not
help but think that in all my distraction driving home that night, it
very well could have been.

At
that point, I had been driving for about six months. I had waited
after many of my friends to get my license because I was very
conscious of the responsibility I assumed as a driver to protect my
safety as well as that of my passengers and other drivers on the
road. As I had gotten more comfortable with driving, I had become
less aware of the importance of attentive driving. That car accident
made me think twice about other ways I had put myself and others at
risk while driving: eating, reaching for things on the car floor,
talking on the phone, and changing car music on the radio or aux. I
had become a dangerous multi-tasker while driving.

With
an average of 34,000 Americans dying annually from car-related
deaths, lawmakers should be concerned about distracted drivers.
Legislation like the “Hands Free” Law in my community, which
prohibits the use of any hand-operated technology while driving, have
been effective. Within six months of a similar law being instated in
the state of Georgia, the rate of fatal crashes dropped 6 percent.
Even popular consumer products now come equipped with preventative
measures, such as the Apple iOS 11 phone, which has a “Do Not
Disturb While Driving Mode” that will block texts and phone calls
with a polite message.


However,
normalizing safe driving does not fall solely on legislators or
businesses: drivers must make personal commitments to being attentive
on the road. I have reduced my distracted driving by regularly
updating a playlist for my aux that I will not want to change often,
resisting the urge to check texts, and trying to eat meals before
getting on the road when possible. My car accident was a frightening
wake-up call for me about distracted driving. Hopefully, other
drivers will not need to find themselves stranded in incoming
rush-hour traffic to drive responsibly.