Credit: Menisha Sohal

Two girls setting a bad example on what not to do while driving.

There are so many dangers out in the world but we can hardly prevent from happening. One thing we can do to is be cautious and not do anything to put yourself in dangerous situations. Car accidents are one of the leading rates for deaths in America. Driving needs to be take more seriously. Especially for teens.

Not even a full month of school has passed and dublin high has had its fair share of accidents in the parking lot, before school, after school, and at lunch time. Here is a couple tips to help keep the road safe and the students out of harms way:

1.Do not text and drive: This is the main reason for the majority of car accidents. Keep your phone on silent and don’t even try to check your messages. It can wait. There is nothing that is so important that you need to check your phone on the spot. Youre not only putting yourself in danger, but your passengers and anyone else on the road.

2. Passengers should not distract the driver:If you’re driving with passengers that tend to be loud and very interactive with you, tell them to calm down and not be a distraction. If you take your eyes off the road for a split second to talk to them you can get into a serious accident. Before you get in the car make sure your passenger understands that something they do can have a huge effect on your driving.

“I got into an accident because I looked over at my passenger who was goofing off and I ended up rear ending another student,” Senior Hannah Lundberg says.

3. Follow all the rules and regulations for driving: This should be the easiest and most basic tip of all, follow the rules. Dont speed and make risky maneuvers. There is a reason that laws are enforced, for safety and to ensure that everyone is being responsible. when you had your permit you made sure to follow every rule so that when you took the driving test you’d be use to following the rules. Dont let good habits like that go to waste.

4. Don’t fidget with the gadgets in the car: You may be tempted to turn on the heater or mess with the radio but doing that means your not paying attention to the road. if you have a passenger in the car have them do all that for you. And if you don’t, before you drive set everything in the car so that while driving you don’t need to change settings.

5. Don’t not drink and drive: Considering the fact that no student is 21, drinking shouldn’t even be a problem. But for the people that do drink regardless of the law, don’t drive. Have a DD(Designated Driver) if you know you will be drinking. Not only is it highly illegal but beyond dangerous and just plain dumb. Drinking and driving is just asking to get into an accident. And if you end up killing someone your life is basically over. Cherish your youth and don’t put the bright future you have in risk over something so avoidable.
“Not only does getting into an accident have a financial and emotional effect on you but I got into so much trouble with my parents and I now have to pay about $700 to fix the damaged,” Lundberg says.