My father had a job in college delivering late luggage from Boston’s Logan Airport. He’s fond of thinking back and reliving with wonderment some of the crazy experiences that job led to, and as usual after a few drinks, he ropes me into hearing these stories. They mostly center around his enigmatic boss, who introduces himself to the airline attendants as “Rrrraul, the Jew from Peru,” rolling the “R” in his name to an absurd degree. This man, a firm believer in the benefits of multivitamins and a devoted father to his school-aged son, was ashamed that he lost his license due to a bad accident he caused, necessitating that he hire my father as a driver for his small business. My father tells again me of the day they delivered the strange-smelling cardboard box to an apartment outside Hartford, and the long-haired recipient exclaimed, “At last, my pot has arrived!” But his most frequent story, the one he really wants to sink into me, is his recollection of driving all the night throughout New England, and the sheer number of accidents they passed on the highways snaking away from Boston. He gets very animated about this point. “You’d never imagine how many accidents there are Owen,” he exclaims, his tone rising as he leans toward me, spilling his drink in his lap, “people just do not realize how often accidents happen!” And then, as always, he mentions the weather. “And don’t get me started if there was snow in the forecast. Even a sprinkling! And wham, there were just so many accidents! It was like I had a crystal ball looking at the weather forecast. I knew as I looked that if the forecast included sleet or snow, there would be multiple multi-car pileups on the roads. MULTIPLE MULTI-CAR PILEUPS!”
Thinking of this essay about driver safety, my father’s stories about pulling all-nighters driving around Boston came back to me. It’s a phenomenon I’ve noticed myself countless times. Even a little flurry coming down on the roads seems to increase the likelihood of coming across an accident. According to the Federal Highway Administration, over 150,000 car accidents occur each year due to snowy and icy road conditions, resulting in 1,800 deaths per year. I believe the reason behind this is more than the obvious fact that precipitation, especially sleet and snow and ice, creates treacherous driving conditions. I believe everyone knows that. But a lot of drivers are probably overconfident in their ability to handle such conditions. They feel that just because they bought the proper winter tires, that they are prepared for ice and snow. Or just because they learned from a YouTube video how to turn into a skid without braking on the icy patch, that they are equipped to prevent a serious accident. Of course, educating people about winter tires and driving techniques is important, and should be continued, but the often-overlooked point is that all it takes is one driver who is not prepared, one car with bald tires, or one driver who panics and brakes over an ice patch to cause an accident, and that accident can easily engulf even the safest and best prepared vehicles.
In addition to traditional driver education programs, driving kits can also help new drivers become more comfortable and confident on the road. These kits typically include resources such as driving handbooks, practice test, videos, and other materials that can help new drivers improve their skills and knowledge. Some advanced kits also include features such as driving simulators, which can help new drivers practice emergency maneuvers and other challenging driving scenarios in a safe and controlled environment. Furthermore, the use of technology-based kits like Dash Cams and GPS Trackers for monitoring driving behaviour and location tracking can help prevent reckless driving or accidents as well. Driving kits can provide new drivers with the skills, knowledge, and resources they need to become safer, more confident drivers. They can help promote safer roads and reduce the number of accidents caused by inexperienced drivers.
Finally, cutting edge technology should be embraced by society in order to improve vehicle safety. The integration of new technology, including autonomous vehicles, has the potential to significantly improve traffic safety by reducing human error and increasing efficiency on the road. Autonomous vehicles are equipped with advanced sensors, such as cameras and radar, that allow them to "see" and "sense" the environment around them. This technology allows autonomous vehicles to detect and respond to potential hazards on the road, such as other vehicles, pedestrians, and obstacles, in a way that is faster and more precise than a human driver. As a result, autonomous vehicles have the potential to greatly reduce the number of accidents caused by human error, such as distracted or impaired driving. Moreover, these vehicle technology also have the ability to communicate with each other and with traffic infrastructure like traffic lights, road signs, and other smart systems. This technology can help to improve traffic flow by reducing congestion and accidents.
In addition to autonomous vehicles, other new technologies such as Advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) such as lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking etc can play a big role in reducing accidents. These systems can help prevent accidents by alerting drivers to potential hazards, assisting with steering and braking, and even taking over control of the vehicle in certain situations. Overall, the integration of new technology, including autonomous vehicles and other advanced technologies, has the potential to greatly improve traffic safety by reducing human error and increasing efficiency on the road.