This Memorial Day Teens Can Turn To Web For Safe Driving Tips To Survive 'Deadliest Driving Season'
Published May 23rd 2007, 6:23pm by Jody DeVere in Featured Articles
Memorial Day weekend kicks off the beginning of summer days of fun, but
according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
(NHTSA), it also kicks off the deadliest driving season of the year.
On
average, 269 more people die in traffic fatalities each month during
the summer than in any other season of the year. Of the 25 deadliest
days on American roads over the past five years, 20 of them fell during
the period between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
Even more
troubling is the fact that motor vehicle crashes are now the leading
cause of death for 15-to-20-year-olds in America, with more than 7,000
teens killed annually in vehicle accidents. NHTSA also reports that
one in five 16-year-old drivers are involved in collisions during their
first year of driving.
To help minimize the number of accidents
involving teens, Ford Motor Company is working to help teens become
better drivers by turning to the Web. Ford is now offering safe
driving tips in video format on popular Web sites like www.youtube.com,
www.yahoo.com, in addition to Ford's interactive teen safe driving Web
site, www.drivingskillsforlife.com.
New tips will be posted each week through early June. The site is a
very cool place for teens and parents to go together to improve their
driving and teaching skills offering pages to assist parents with
coaching as well as tips for beginning drivers.
Right now five videos are available on the Driving Skills for Life video player, and a dozen Ford videos are available at You Tube.
The short video spots provide a variety of driving tips for teens and
adults delivered by professional instructors from Ford's Driving Skills
for Life program. The videos show teens what to do if passenger-side
wheels leave the roadway, how to recover in a skid, how to sit properly
for safe driving, how to anticipate danger, and when it's important to
slow down. They're short and informative, and presented in a way that
will keep teens interested in their contents.
"We're turning
to the Web because that's where teens live, and where they get much of
their information," said Sue Cischke, senior vice president,
Sustainability, Environment and Safety Engineering, Ford Motor
Company. "We want the video spots to get teens thinking about safe
driving, and we think the tips can be valuable for adults, as well."
Cischke
said the best way for teens to learn safe driving is to get behind the
wheel with an experienced driver - a driving instructor or parent - who
can share their knowledge first hand.
"The best thing both teens and adults can do to remain safe is to
buckle up, and avoid alcohol while driving. Research into driving
related injuries and fatalities clearly demonstrates that," Cischke
said. "We're proud that our safe driving program has helped many teens
return home safely, and we want to spread our safe driving message any
way we can." The tips pages for parents are very useful in guiding them
to be helpful mentors to their young drivers.
Research
provided by NHTSA indicates that one of the biggest reasons for high
teen driver and passenger fatalities is low safety belt use among
teens. More than 60 percent of occupants killed in vehicles driven by
teens were not wearing safety belts. When worn correctly, seat belts
reduce the risk of fatal injury to front-seat passenger car occupants
by 45 percent - and by 60 percent in pickup trucks, SUVs and
mini-vans. Yet nearly one in five Americans still fail to regularly
wear their safety belts. What's up with that?
Ford's Driving
Skills for Life program emphasizes belt use and helps young drivers
improve their skills in four key areas that are critical factors in
more than 60 percent of teen vehicle crashes: hazard recognition,
vehicle handling, space management and speed management. Ford will
continue to hold several hands-on driving safety events across the
United States, and provide free educational materials to high schools
around the country.
Established
in 2003 by Ford Motor Company and the Governors Highway Safety
Association, Driving Skills for Life provides effective learning tools,
including the comprehensive interactive Web site that rewards students
for taking the initiative to learn safe driving techniques. In
addition, educator materials are available at no charge in both English
and Spanish, allowing instruction of the program in school or community
settings. Driving Skills for Life has staged hands-on driving events
that have reached nearly 6,000 students. The program also combines
learning materials for use by students, parents, educators, and
instructors for use at home, in schools and community settings.
With summer quickly approaching, now is the time to check out the www.drivingskillsforlife.com website and help your teen become a better driver during this dangerous driving season.
By Brandy Schaffels
Contributing Editor
Tags
auto, car, car, car selling buying repair and automotive advice for women, driving, driving skills for life, ford motor company, interactive learning tools, memorial day, teen driving tips, teen safety, you tube driving videos Recent Posts
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