2008 Teen Driver Safety Week

GEORGIA CELEBRATES TEEN DRIVER SAFETY WEEK

QUESTION: What’s the NUMBER ONE CAUSE OF TEEN DEATH?

(If you said Drugs, Guns, Gang Violence, or Suicide you’d be way off. The answer will surprise you..)

ANSWER: CAR CRASHES CONTINUE TO BE THE RUNAWAY KILLER OF AMERICAN TEENS!

And it’s a little known fact that teen passengers and teen drivers pose a deadly combination that contribute to this nationwide trend. With just one peer passenger, a teen driver doubles their risk for a fatal crash. With three or more peer passengers, the risk increases four-to-five times.

“Teen passengers can often mean the difference between life and death for teen drivers,” says Director Bob Dallas of the Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety. “We know the risks increase with more teenagers in a vehicle and that is a risk that young drivers can control themselves.”

Recent research from the Young Driver Research Initiative (YDRI) emphasizes the significance of discussing safe passenger practices with teens and even adolescents. For instance, studies show the risk of dying in a crash involving a teen driver actually doubles between the ages of 12 and 14. With each teenage year, that risk increases.

“It’s a tragic fact,” says GOHS Director Bob Dallas. “More than half of teens who die in crashes are passengers. And they raise their own risk even more when they don’t wear a seat belt or when they ride with a new driver. Teens are by nature inexperienced, and therefore more dangerous drivers. That’s why we’re committed to educating our state’s young drivers during National Teen Driver Safety Week this October 19th through the 25th and throughout the year.”

Part of the teen fatality crash problem is few teens view their friends as inexperienced drivers or believe that teen passengers make any significant difference in their driving safety. According to the National Teen Driver Survey conducted by The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and State Farm Insurance, these attitudes came from the 5,665 9th to 11th graders surveyed.

That’s why the Governor's Office of Highway Safety has taken a closer look at the data behind this deadly trend and Georgia parents and teens alike will be concerned to learn what we’ve found:

• Drivers between the ages of 16 and 24 have a higher rate of crashes, injuries and death than drivers over 24. In 2006, 149 teen occupants were fatally injured in traffic crashes.

• In 2006, the crash rate per 100,000 licensed drivers ages 16 and 17 was 184 percent higher than the rate for drivers over 24.

• In 2006 teen drivers were associated with 244 crash fatalities that include persons of all ages killed in crashes where a teen was at least one of the drivers.

“We cannot let these numbers continue to grow,” says GOHS Director Dallas. “Teens often have a feeling of invincibility and we all need to help dispel that myth and educate teens that while driving is a privilege they can be worthy of, there are more risks involved simple because they are teenagers.”

In Georgia, the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety has the help of a national grant from the Ford Motor Company’s Driving Skills for Life (DSFL) program to further develop teen driver safety programs. The DSFL program is designed to help states increase awareness of the hazards of teen driving and teach the critical skills youth need to respond to the demands of the road.

Earlier this year, Georgia was one of just nine states to receive more than $200,000 in teen driver safety grants. Georgia’s grant of $20,000 has been used to implement DSFL programs in 10 high schools that were chosen based upon their county’s data for high risk teen drivers.

GOHS Director Dallas has these lifesaving tips for teens who must drive together, to help keep each other safe in the following ways:

• Reduce passenger distractions in the car

• Always wear seat belts

• Help to navigate when asked “After all, only one in ten teens know that passengers increase a teen driver’s risk,” says Director Dallas. “Most teen driver crashes are due to driver error caused by inexperience and distraction. Novice teen drivers lack the experience needed on the road to recognize and react to high-risk conditions and situations. Distractions such as passengers compound the inexperience factor and increase teen driver risk. So lets help drive down these risks!”

Another lifesaving solution proven to decrease fatal and non-fatal crash risk among teen drivers is the enactment of Georgia’s Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) laws. These laws require a lengthened learning phase beginning at age 16, as well as other restrictions for new drivers.

In Georgia, GDL laws exist for instructional, intermediate, and full licenses:

• A Class D intermediate license is granted to 16 to 18 year olds who have held an instructional (“learner’s”) permit for 12 months and passed a driving test.

• Restrictions for intermediate licenses include no driving between midnight and 6a.m., limiting passengers to family members for the first six months, allowing only one non-related passenger under age 21 during the second six months and allowing up to only three non-related passengers under the age of 21 after the first year.

• Full, or Class C, licenses are only granted to drivers who are at least 18, who hold the Class D license and who’ve not had any major traffic convictions in the previous 12 months.

From October 19 through 25, the Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety joins its nationwide partners to increase awareness during Teen Driver Safety Week.

For more information visit us on the web at www.gahighwaysafety.org or http://www.ridelikeafriend.com/organizer/ or contact GOHS Planner Barbara Jones at 404-657-9246 or GOHS Planner Kelly Carlson at 404-463-0364.