I have lived in Arizona most of my life – I learned to drive on its roads. After a few years of experience, I can now say that commuting is the most frustrating part of my day.
I live in South Phoenix, Ahwatukee Foothills Village, if you have ever heard about it. That means my commute to my classes on the Downtown Phoenix Campus can take between 25 to 30 minutes on a good day, and my commute to my classes on the Tempe Campus is from 20 to 25 minutes — the majority of that time I spend on the freeway.
I often see car wrecks while commuting, some fatal.
Just about every incident on the road extends my estimated time of arrival, and it worries me how common it can be.
Arizona has five of the nation's most dangerous roadways for speeding, according to data collected by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and reported by Truckinfo.net.
Steven Polzin, a research professor for the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, said there are oftentimes multiple factors that contribute to accidents.
"It's the driver, the vehicle, the infrastructure, the emergency response," Polzin said. "Driver behavior, in my opinion, is the factor that we've been a little reluctant to be as serious about as I wish we were."
Apparently, there is a law for aggressive driving – I had no idea. ARS 28-693 is supposed to target reckless drivers who disregard the safety of others on the road. Arizona is one of 11 other states that have specific laws to target aggressive driving, according to the Arizona Governor's Office of Highway Safety.
"If you're going to put new rules in place, that's fine, that'll help, but it only helps when people abide by it," Polzin said.
Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesperson Bart Graves said generally anything the legislature might be doing to help them prevent crashes "is a good thing," but one of the department's biggest problems is having enough troopers on the roads.
When they have a presence on the highways, it makes a difference.
"(A) funny thing happens when troopers are sitting in the median along a highway, people see that trooper, see that marked vehicle, tend to slow down… that's a good thing," Graves said.
Normally, the drive home from classes, work, events, or anywhere else I am supposed to be at should be the time I can step away from it all and decompress.
Instead, I get infuriated.
Do not get me wrong, I have become part of the problem in some ways. I sometimes will sacrifice safety in order to shave off time, and on certain occasions, end up driving in anger.
Last month, I got into my first accident.
I got out of a late class at the Tempe Campus and took the Valley Metro Street Car to the stop near ASU Lot 59 where my car was parked.
Tired and ready to get home, I headed south onto Rural Road to get onto US Route 60. I merged, preparing to exit south on Interstate 10.
Getting ready to go on the overhead pass, I saw the car to the left of me turn their blinker on — they were trying to merge into my lane. I was going a little faster than the other car, so I tried to just pass them.
The next thing I felt was the car merging into me.
We pulled over and decided to head to a nearby gas station to exchange information, where the driver showed me that their passenger-side mirror was completely missing. Luckily, the insurance company told me the other driver was the one in the wrong.
My car is still in the shop.
Again, I am not the best driver, but I have more to learn and after the small scare I had, I will take the rules of the road more seriously.
Since I am a busy college student, I tend to run a few minutes late to things and will try to make up that time while driving.
"I got to get there, I can't be late," said Jesse Torrez, the director of the Arizona Governor's Office of Highway Safety. "As time goes on, you realize that none of that is as important as getting someplace safe."
Edited by George Headley, Sophia Braccio and Natalia Jarrett.
Reach the reporter at elbradfo@asu.edu and follow @emmalbradford__on X.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on X.
Emma is a sophomore studying journalism and mass communication and political science, with a minor in business. This is her third semester with The State Press.
