There are approximately 165 million registered automotive vehicles in the United States. In Canada there are more than 13 million; in Italy, 19 million; France, 21 million; and Japan, 37 million. Most of these automobiles, trucks, buses, and other motor vehicles travel along busy thoroughfares each day.

The Most Common Causes of Accidents

Almost 18 million traffic accidents are reported in the United States annually, and more than 450,000 are reported in Canada each year. Human error is responsible for about 90 percent of these accidents.

The most frequent traffic violations committed by poor drivers are: (1) speeding—the principal contributing factor in fatal and nonfatal traffic accidents; (2) failing to yield the right-of-way—ranks second in nonfatal and third in fatal accidents; and (3) driving under the influence of alcohol—a factor in at least half of the fatal accidents.

Safe Drivers Must Be Trained

The final responsibility for preventing traffic accidents rests with the driver. The best way to be sure that every motorist is capable of operating an automobile is to offer formal training in the techniques and mechanics of driving. Friends or relatives do not make ideal instructors. Frequently such persons did not have formal instruction and, although they mean well, often pass their own bad habits on to the pupil.

The driver education programs offered by many high schools in the United States, Canada, and other countries provide the best means of training prospective drivers. These programs are conducted by teachers who have been trained to instruct new drivers. Some schools also include driver training in their adult education programs.

Standards for a unified program to be presented by all high schools in the United States have been established by the National Conference of Safety Education. The standards call for 90 hours of classroom instruction and practical driving experience.

What a Driver-Trainee Learns

A typical course for training prospective drivers consists of three phases. One phase is classroom instruction. The second phase is a laboratory phase, which includes either driver simulation techniques or practice on a driver's range or both. The third phase is actual driving experience on the street.

In the classroom the trainee learns the basic mechanical principles of how and why an automobile runs. A student also masters the rules of the road and learns to identify and know the meanings of various traffic signs and warning signals. Sound safety practices are also taught.

No amount of classroom instruction, however, can teach a person how to drive. This skill must be acquired by practical experience. For this reason the trainee learns how to perform basic operations—starting the motor, guiding a car through traffic, stopping, and parking—by actually driving an automobile. This is done in a special training car equipped with dual controls. The extra controls are for the instructor who supervises the student's practical driving training.

The Human Element in Driving

Throughout the driver education program, both in the classroom and in the training car, one major fact is emphasized over and over again. This fact is that the habits a student acquires during the training period will be reflected in future behavior behind the wheel—and these habits will largely determine whether one becomes a safe, competent driver or a dangerous driver.

Every motorist must understand that an automobile is a large, powerful machine. It can move at very high speeds. Even at speeds of 55 miles an hour or more it can be operated so smoothly and easily that its driver may be lulled into a feeling of false security. It is therefore imperative that every driver remain alert.

The motorist who is not alert cannot cope with a sudden emergency as quickly as is necessary. An overly relaxed driver requires more time to react to an emergency than does an alert one. For example, it takes longer for a daydreaming driver to react and apply the brakes when a child darts into the car's path than it takes for an alert driver to do so.

The time interval between a driver's first recognition of danger and the response to it is called reaction time. The average reaction time for most drivers is three fourths of a second. The alert driver in the situation cited above would apply the brakes within three quarters of a second after detecting the child.

A driver's reaction time may be affected by many different factors. Some of these are permanent handicaps; others are only temporary. Certain cases of arthritis and paralysis, for example, are permanent handicaps that may prevent some persons from reacting fast enough in an emergency. The normal slowing down that occurs as a person grows older may also lengthen reaction time. Temporary, correctable factors include faulty eyesight, defective hearing, and such illnesses as the common cold.

An emotionally immature person is almost always a dangerous driver. Examples of emotionally immature persons are: those who show off; those who resent authority; those who act impulsively and take chances; those who are aggressive and intolerant of the shortcomings of others; those who exaggerate their own importance and abilities; and those who do not respect the rights of others.

Reaction time is also severely slowed by alcohol consumption. Alcohol is involved in almost half of all annual road traffic fatalities in the United States. Laws equating specified blood alcohol concentrations with evidence of being drunk have been passed in most countries. Attempts to curb drunk driving have taken the form of heavy fines, jail sentences, and loss of driving licenses.

Safety Devices and Safety Legislation

Since its beginnings the automobile industry has developed many safety devices and features, such as four-wheel brakes, brake lights, turn signals, and safety glass. One of the most significant safety devices is the seat belt. This helps prevent a person's being thrown from a car or tossed about in it when an accident occurs. An estimated 12,000 lives could be saved each year if all passengers and drivers used seat belts. (See also Safety.)

In 1966 the National Traffic Safety Agency was established to set federal safety standards for cars, buses, trucks, and motorcycles. In 1967 the agency issued its first list of standards for most motor vehicles. It included such features as seat belts for all occupants, shatter-resistant windshields, and energy-absorbing steering mechanisms. Most of the features listed were required on all new motor vehicles sold in the United States after Jan. 1, 1968. Also created in 1966 was the National Highway Safety Agency. Its function was to set standards for state highway safety programs. In 1967 the two agencies were merged into the National Highway Traffic Safety Bureau. The bureau was named the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in 1970.

In 1978 Tennessee became the first state to adopt child passenger protection legislation, requiring some sort of child restraint apparatus for children under four years of age. This resulted in a reduction of the fatality and serious injury rates in that state by 50 percent in 1978 and 71 percent in 1979. Since that time, almost all states have passed similar child passenger protection laws.