Some days it feels like traffic just keeps get worse and worse. Cars are stacked bumper to bumper on the highway, people are cutting you off left and right, and for some reason there’s always that one car going ten miles an hour under the speed limit regardless of what the speed limit is. The simple reality is that our expanding population and the resulting increased number of vehicles on our road networks has consistently exceeded the expansion of our road networks. This scenario has been consistent for decades resulting in increased traffic congestion that feeds increasing traffic accident frequency.

In traffic, typically people are trying to get where they want to go as fast as they can, especially if they’re already running late. Many will try to speed through traffic, but this can end up causing major accidents and lead to further increased traffic congestion!

One of the main causes of traffic accidents is speeding. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),speeding-related deaths increased by 4.0 percent in 2016.

Distracted driving is also on the rise as people become more and more accustomed to using technology on the road. Smart cars are becoming more popular, with exciting features people can use on the road, as well as cell phone use.

Cell phone use was a factor in 14 percent of all fatal distracted-affected crashes, but in only 1 percent of the 32,166 fatal crashes reported in 2015, according to the Insurance Information Institute.

While it may seem like you’re only looking down at your phone for a second, it could end up being longer and you could become the cause of a major traffic accident. In fact, according to the CDC – it takes 5 seconds just to check a text message while driving! Cell phones are not the only cause of traffic accidents, as drugs and alcohol also play a major part in causing crashes and fatalities.

According to the NHTSA, about half of all traffic fatalities involve unbelted occupants, and almost a third involve drivers who were impaired by drugs or alcohol. Teenagers aren’t the only ones not buckling up when they get into a vehicle. Adults are just as guilty of putting their lives at risk by not buckling their seat belts.

With the challenges of safe driving, the National Driver Safety Institute focuses on how to combat these problems. The NDSI trains drivers to learn from past mistakes and make significant changes to their driving approach that could save theirs or someone else’s life. NDSI defensive driving and driver improvement courses place significant emphasis on teaching proven methods to improve driver focus.

According to a study by Florida’s Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, teens who graduated from a defensive driving school possessed cumulative crash rates 77% lower than the general 15-to-19-year-old population.

Driver education courses can improve not only your driving skills but also teach how to use caution and safe habits on the road. It is important for not only teens to utilize these courses that educate on safe driving techniques, but it’s also important for adults. Everyone is responsible for using safe driving habits and not being a danger to anyone else or themselves on the road.