Spring is finally here in Northwest Indiana. The flowers and trees are blooming with the increasingly better weather each day. The countdown has commenced for the last day of school to arrive in a few weeks. With school out our families will be on the road more. The month of May being Global Youth Traffic Safety Month is a great time to have a conversation with your teens about distracted driving.
Did you know that vehicle crashes are the No. 1 cause of teen deaths?
It’s been reported by the National Safety Council that half of all teens will be involved in a car crash before graduating high school. Here’s a few statistics from the National Safety Council that’s alarming. 66% of teen passengers who die in a crash are not wearing a seat belt. Distracted driving is sited as the cause of 58% of the crashes. An underage drinking driver is responsible for 25% of all crashes. 5% of teen deaths in crashes are pedestrians and 10% are bicyclists.
Now for the good news, parental involvement can decrease the chances of their teen being involved in a crash. Parents shouldn’t rely solely on a driver’s education class to teach their youthful driver good driving habits. Make it a policy to NEVER TEXT AND DRIVE. Restricting your teens night driving as well as the number of passengers riding with them. Supervise practice driving and always have everyone wear seat belts. Teaching your teen good driving habits may save their life someday.