Speeding And Its Costs Essay, Research Paper

Speeding And Its Costs

The reason that it is unsafe to speed is that it affects everyone. When

you speed, you endanger you, and everyone on the road. If you lose

control of the car, then you could hit someone, and possibly kill them, not to

mention yourself. Imagine how bad it would feel to hit a new mother, with

her baby beside her, and kill her new born baby. Would you be able to live

with that for the rest of your life? Or if you are on your way home from

work, and you wanted to get home a little early, so you decide to speed.

Well on your way home, you hit a car that looks familiar. When you walk up

to the window, you glance in, and on the seat dead is your mother. These

are things that happen to people everyday. These are things you need to

think about every time you speed, or drive wrecklessly. Motor vehicle

crashes are the leading cause of death among Americans 1-37 years old. ”

With the largest % being our age group. (Insurance Institute for Highway

Safety). However, did you know that according to the IIHS, you are 34%

MORE likely to be involved in an accident if you use a car phone while

driving? In 1998 there were 41,471 reported deaths from car accidents. That

is an average of 118 people dying a day because people driving wecklessly.

Most people think they know how to drive better than everyone else. Proven

in a national survey by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety 3/4 of the

543 drivers questioned thought their driving skills were above average. (U.S.

News) A good driver is a person who operates a vehicle with skill and does

not engage in unsafe driving practices. This person should also know his or

her limitations, as well as the vehicle s. There are very few “Good Drivers”

out there today.

I have learned that the only place that speeding will get you faster, is in

trouble. The aftermath of a speeding ticket includes high cost, time, and the

overall frustrating experience. The expenses for a speeding ticket may vary

depending on the seriousness of the offense. Most states charge anywhere

between ten and twenty dollars for every mile per hour over the speed limit.

In most cases the numbers quickly add up to hundreds of dollars per ticket.

Most insurance companies consider a person with an extensively bad driving

record a high risk driver. Then that persons insurance rates quickly sky

rocket to a additional hundreds of dollars a year. Costing then much more

than the initial ticket that they thought they would get away with just paying it

off. The tickets often stay on a person s record for a number of years, there

for are a constant reminder of the previous mistake. This can harm your

chances for a new job (depending on the ticket), or harm your chances on

getting decent or cheap insurance rates.

It took me a speeding ticket, and two accidents to realize that cars are

not toys, and they will hurt you, and others. I totaled two cars, and was hurt

in both incedents. I thought I was an experienced driver, and it would never

happen to me, but it did. Because I was not used to the conditions that

arose. Not every accident can be avoided, but the majority are due to

incompetence, inattention or lack of experience. I can see now that cars have

to be respected, or they will kill you, or at least hurt you very badly. I have

learned from Drivers Ed, and defensive driving courses that you must always

pay attention to the conditions around you. Nobody is a perfect driver, so

always pay attention. Young, inexperienced drivers (that includes people

between the ages of 15 to 20) account for ONLY 6.7% of the licensed

drivers in the U.S. However, this age group is involved in OVER 40% of the

total fatal accidents while speeding or recklessly operating a vehicle. Most

of these people thought that they were in the right while breaking these laws,

because they were not taught about them, or they thought they would not get

caught. Speeding is one of the most common ways young people break the

law.

From now on I will not speed no matter how late I am, or how bad I

want to get there. In closing, I would like to appologize to the court, and the

people that I endangered while speeding.

By: Micheal Turner