Have you ever driven on a route you're so familiar with that you zone out to an extent to where you make actions unconsciously? It's always a little worrisome realizing that you don't remember what just happened. What if someone had gone onto the road in front of me? Would I have been able to get back into the zone and stop the car before something happened? It's the equivalent to using a self-driving car. When something the car can't manage happens, it immediately changes back to the driver's control. That quick response necessary to prevent a casualty in such a situation is almost non-existent for most people. All that I have talked about is simply the dangers of driving. However, many choose to go a step further and distract themselves by texting or having an alcoholic drink or any other type of drug as they drive. These people truly don't understand the dangers of impaired driving. 

I have never been in a car crash; however, I know three people dear to me who have. The First one involved my mother. I was around 5 years old and at my friend's house when my mom didn't pick me up at the correct time. She was hours late but luckily survived. Seeing the car, she was in and the story she told of her experience was quite traumatic to me, especially how young I was, the thought and chance of losing my mom was very hard to think about. It wasn't her but the other driver who was on a call and T-boned my mom’s car. That such impairment was enough to endanger both their lives. Even more so for my mom, as her airbag had busted, releasing hot air. 

The second crash involved my sister. She was driving to work when suddenly going off the road. Breaking through trees that thick would've easily killed her had they hit the left side of the truck. When seeing it, the entire right side was crumpled. She got a concussion and couldn't recall all of the details. She herself was uncertain how it happened, however her job did start very early with the combination of not enough sleep was likely the cause of drowsiness which then resulted in that crash. Getting enough sleep before getting behind the wheel is something that every driver should know as it was a part of the lesson to get their driver’s license. The DMV knows the seriousness to it as it can result in drowsiness and/or sudden microsleeps. 

The last crash was with my cousin. She herself was a mother, however, wasn't as lucky as the others. From what I last had heard, she was believed to have been driving to a dealer, meaning she herself might've been under influence of a drug. She crashed and died instantly, with unforgettable descriptions of her physical state. All three of those who crashed were each varying in age. My sister was 19, mom was 44, and my cousin was in her mid-30’s. Your age doesn’t matter for car crashes but each of these crashes involve some sort of impairment. 

These crashes are still not taken lightly. Just because those two survived those incidents doesn’t mean they will another. That same mindset should be regular for every driver, not just the ones who have been in a crash. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that "Every day, about 34 people in the United States die in drunk-driving crashes - that's one person every 42 minutes. In 2023, 12,429 people died in alcohol-impaired driving traffic deaths. These deaths were all preventable." It's possible for everyone and even more so distracted to get in a car crash. Drugs make you hallucinate and makes it almost impossible to focus for long. They can also take away your strength. So much so that you may feel sick or not have enough energy to steer the wheel. It may also cause reckless behavior such as speeding which not only risks the driver’s life, but all of those around them as well. The use of phones while driving is another terribly common impairment. Whether it’s texting or even on a call. It was the way the other driver ran into my mom’s car. They were calling someone and weren’t paying enough attention. Taking any form of attention away from driving can be detrimental. 

There are many programs highlighting the dangers of impaired driving. Most people who know anything about it are through the courses to get their driver’s license. That is where most warnings should be. I would suggest links to personal experiences as well as records of crashes throughout the courses. This would connect the audience to the people who had experienced such crashes. I only truly know the dangers because of the people around me who have actually experienced a car crash, which makes me very cautious in how I drive.