Since your childhood, no actually since your parents’ childhood, no I guess since pre-independence – no it’s actually since Adam developed an ego and got his sense of entitlement that it was established that women don’t drive well. Through countless jibes and endless jokes, this statement has held the test of times just like other tenets like ‘the earth is round’ and ‘gravity pulls things down’.
I doubt anyone put their heads together to figure out why such gender bias originated. It surely can’t be that only woman drivers are bad. My wife and I commute daily by car, and we see the supposedly better drivers (i.e. “men”) do the most obnoxious things while driving. We have seen men honk for random reasons, we see men fighting over little scratches, we see men blatantly flouting traffic lights. And yes, we also see the routine road rage by men, where they showcase their biceps and vocabulary because you violated their basic right – the right to go first!!
Now let’s talk about why women are supposedly the bad drivers. Women are usually given the task of driving when it’s absolutely unavoidable. I too have been guilty of that. How many girls are enrolled in driving schools? There is always a father, brother (elder or younger, that doesn’t matter), husband or a paid driver, who becomes your chauffeur and picks you up from dance classes, yoga classes, gym or even birthday parties.
When girls are conditioned from the outset that they are not capable of driving or given the confidence that they can manoeuvre a car, how will they showcase the same on roads? That’s why we see some women who are a little uneasy while changing lanes, reverse parking or overtaking. I have been driving for over a decade while my wife has just started driving in the peak hours. The gap is evident as I have a decade of experience more than her. It’s not that I am a better driver; it’s just that I have had more practice.
On a routine basis, women are given cars to go to a mall nearby, pick kids from school, or grab some vegetables from the local market. Their practice is limited to 1-2 km or within the locality. Also, most of the women drive cars that they do not own. Whenever you have someone else’s asset, you are bound to take more precautions.
I regret not teaching my mother to drive. All her mobility is dependent on us. In today’s times, it’s absolutely imperative that we all are on the go and reach places on time – and that too, on our own. The feeling of waiting every time for someone to pick you or drop you makes one under-confident as well as guilty of making a plan. But just handing women with cars is not the end. Teach them basic maintenance; teach them how to change a tyre. Make them responsible for the vehicle. It’s their asset to use, and not an item to be borrowed when needed.
To all the doting fathers, let your princess be behind the wheels at the earliest. Do not make her wait for another man, let her drive over to pick him up. To all the protective brothers, have your sisters pick you up from late-night parties. To all the husbands, have your wives drive one way if you’re going together, or else show confidence that they can drive in peak hours. Treat her as a co-driver, not as a passenger. Do not make a big deal of the small scratches or constant honking from someone behind. Just remember, when you started out driving, you needed assurance. To the fellow drivers, the next time you see a woman driving in your rear mirror, wipe that smirk off your face – she does not need your validation or criticism.
The next time you see a woman driving in front of you and not giving you way, stop the usual rant that women cannot drive. It is high time we start respecting women driving cars. Let’s stop putting women behind us, instead, put them behind a steering!