National Teen Driver Safety Week is commemorated in response to the increasing rate of road crashes involving teenagers.
Alarmed
by this growing trend, the U.S. government declared the third week of
October each year as a time for parents, teens, and educators to gather
and push for teen safe driving education.
This is a week dedicated to raise awareness on safe teen driving, and what a good cause that is. I'm shocked sometimes to see some of the careless actions of other drivers on the road (not just by teenagers, either!).
However, the sad truth is that the statistics show that car collisions top the reason for teen fatalities in the United States.
In 2007 alone, more than 4,000 teens were killed
and almost 400,000 were badly injured as the result of road accidents.
To
address this critical issue, the government requires the application of
the Graduate Licensing System or GDL in three stages. This process
demands that teens undergo longer and more intense training to test
their driving skills.
The GLS system requires that a parent
or guardian must be around to supervise the teen enrollee at the start
of independent driving. This advance system has proven to have
decreased the rate of traffic crashes by 20%-40%.
Safe
driving for teenagers is the ultimate goal of the National Teen Driver
Safety Week. Studies reveal that car accidents involving teens are
caused by inexperience of the driving teenager; distractions while
driving such as phone conversations or texting; over-speeding; and
extreme physical fatigue.
Underage driving, and driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs are also becoming much too prevalent.
How
should parents and authorities deal with this trend? Parents are
encouraged to emphasize the importance of wearing seatbelts. Parents
are also asked to observe their teens and supervise them when driving.
This is especially important for those who have just learned how to
drive. Licensed drivers must be present in the car.
Safe
teen driving is a critical issue involving large communities of
teenagers throughout the country. As such, teens are being educated
about when and when not to drive under particular weather conditions.
For first-time teenage drivers, driving at night is discouraged for the
initial six months.
Teen drivers are restricted from using
cellular phones while driving. Also, teens are advised to limit the
number of passengers in the car for the initial six months. Lower speed
limits are also required when driving on wet roads or during conditions
of lesser visibility.
The National Teen Driver
Safety Week has the goal of making each teenager a responsible driver.
With interesting activities lined up for the week, teens are expected to
embrace the importance of keeping themselves and others safe.
Although essentially focused on safe teen driving, the National Teen
Driver Safety week also underscores the role that parents should take
on. Supervising teens’ driving skills need not be a stressful activity
for the parent and the teen. In fact, it is a good way to promote safe
driving for teenagers that can also translate to parent-child bonding.
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