Blog Topic

End Distracted Driving
Posted by: Craig A. Knapp
January 02, 2012

Remember getting your license when you were finally of age? The excitement and anticipation leading up to that point was nearly unbearable. All you could talk about is "When I'm old enough to drive I'm going to (insert action here)." Meanwhile, we had no idea the anxiety our parent or guardian was feeling over the idea of us getting behind the wheel and rightfully so. Car crashes are the number one killer of teens. The worst part about this statistic is that most accidents are avoidable. In fact, a recent study shows that 80% of teen accidents involved some sort of driver distraction as a contributing factor-leaving more than 4 million crashes taking place each year that could have been avoided.

In April 2012, a group will set out to high schools around the nation in an effort to End Distracted Driving. The states that will be visited are: Alaska, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Vermont. At these presentations, tips will be provided, as well as handouts, to help teens learn how to drive safely.

Parents: don't be afraid to set rules and boundaries for your teens while driving. If you have to, make a list of items for them to remember to do and hang it in the car. For example, put on your seatbelt, fix mirrors, make sure nothing is under the pedal, etc... Also, enforce rules early on, such as no texting while driving or no using their iPod while driving. Let them know the consequences of what partaking in these activities could do, not only to them, but to other passengers in the car and drivers on the road. Most importantly, always remember to lead by example. This is the single most important thing you could do to teach your teen safe driving tips.

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