Road injuries and even deaths are a major source of concern in countries around the globe. While many believe that the best approach to greater road safety is to raise the minimum age at which individuals can obtain a license, there are more effective ways to make the roads safer for everyone.
Those who feel the age limit for acquiring a license should be elevated believe that younger people are too inexperienced to drive safely. In general, if an individual is only 16 when they receive their license, they are still quite young and potentially immature, therefore the risk of them driving recklessly and causing an accident increases significantly. However, it is unclear how much of a contribution younger drivers make to the overall number of traffic collisions, consequently, casting the blame on these teenage motorists may seem somewhat unjustified.
On the other hand, it is clear that there are a range of other factors that reduce road safety. One of the biggest is simply inattentive drivers of all ages. With the advent of mobile phones, motorists are often distracted by checking their messages or their GPS, and this lack of focus on the road in front of them is a major cause of accidents. Similarly, people often drive while fatigued or under the influence of drugs or alcohol, which all reduce one’s reaction time and magnify the risk of a driving error.
The best way to improve road safety is to not have people in charge of controlling vehicles that travel at high speed and can cause destruction in the blink of an eye. As technology advances, self-driving cars are only just around the corner, and only once computer algorithms rather than people are in charge of vehicles will road safety improve.