Before you start the engine let me tell you some facts.
According to the U.S Department of Transportation, every year more than 2,200 people are killed and more than 55,000 are injured in motorcycle crashes.
A statistical projection of traffic fatalities from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration states that for first three quarters of 2009 an estimated 25,576 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes.
“More than 5,000 teenagers die in car accidents ever year,” Reader’s Digest stated on an online campaign on teen safe driving.
According to the campaign, traffic accident is the no. 1 killer of teens.
Do you want to be one of these 5,000 teen driving fatalities?
If you are a parent, how would you protect your teen ager from traffic accidents?
Safety is the key
The NHTSA and the Department of Public Safety in their “Click It or Ticket” and “No to Driving under the Influence” campaigns said following simple safety measures will help save a driver’s life.
The Office of Special Services of DPS recommends teens to undergo driver education and obtain a driver’s license before driving “to prevent car accidents and to be educated of the pros and cons of driving.”
The following are among the safety precautions authorities recommend to young drivers.
Buckle up. The NHTSA report states that teens use their seatbelts far less frequently than adults do. According to the report, “despite efforts aimed at increasing belt use among teens, observed seat belt use among teens and young adults (16 to 24 years old) stood at 76 percent in 2006 — the lowest of any age group.”
The report added 58 percent of the motor vehicle accidents that occurred this year involved teens who do not buckle up.
No Alcohol. The NHTSA said teens are at far greater risk of death in an alcohol-related crash than the overall population, despite the fact they cannot legally purchase or publicly possess alcohol in any state.
No cell phone. Cell phones can distract a driver’s focus on driving. The NHTSA said driver distraction from all sources contributes to 25 percent of all police-reported traffic crashes.
Parenting
The NHTSA and the local Division of Motor Vehicles encourage parents to guide teenagers in driving.
“[Parents] need to talk to your kids about traffic safety early and often,” the NHTSA stated.
It added “When your teenager begins driving, we recommend that you set rules and then clearly outline the consequences of breaking the rules.”
Parents should remind their teenager that driving is a privilege and “a privilege they will lose if they don’t drive by your rules.”
Moreover, parents should be role models in driving safely.
They should remind the young drivers in the family to have no more than one passenger at all times and to have the car in the driveway by 10 p.m.
Stories
Giving birth to a child is surely physically challenging but nothing would be more emotionally and physically challenging and painful than losing a child in an accident.
In Reader’s Digest’s campaign and forum on safe teen driving found at http://www.rd.com/openDiscussion.do?contentId=86779&trkid=rdmagkw_0808, parents shared their stories on how they discipline their teen drivers.
Some of the parents, who lost their kids in a car accident, also shared their experiences and advices.
Here are some of the recent comments:
“I teach them by being a good example to them. I practice what I preach.” — timsummers28.
“In New York…we have started a pilot program for teen driving…we recorded a song that is dedicated to my friend and his brother Chris Gentile who died in a car accident in 2007. The video and the song help teens realize that [the accident] can happen to any of us.” — liz17row, New York
“Since [my son’s death], we have tried to warn kids about the responsibility of driving through community presentations and scholarships,” — sonnybf, Oklahoma
“You can’t legislate a teenage kid’s hormones — you need to modify their behavior. Let’s face it — teenagers, especially boys, love to drive fast. I’m not a kid anymore and I still love it — but I’ve taken defensive driver training and I have become conditioned that speed kills.” —Safetyfanatic.
