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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 16, 2019)
Wednesday, October 16, 2019 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon 21 Talk to your teen about the importance of driving safety National Teen Driver Safety Week is October 20-26, and the U.S. Department of Transportation9s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is teaming up with High Desert Driver Education to help empower parents to discuss the impor- tance of driving safety with their young drivers. The week is a perfect time to begin 4 and continue 4 this conversation, and to remind parents not to hand over the car keys until their teen knows the rules of the road. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens 15 to 18 years old in the United States, ahead of all other types of injury, disease, and violence. In 2017, there were 2,247 people killed in crashes involving a teen driver (15-18 years old), of which 755 deaths were the teen driver 4 a 3% decrease from 2016. In fact, in 2017, there were an estimated 93,000 teen drivers injured in motor vehicle traffic crashes, and an estimated 293,000 people injured in crashes involving a teen driver, accounting for an estimated 11% of all those injured that year. <Because of their lack of experience, teen drivers are a potential danger to themselves and to other drivers, which is why it is so important that parents take time to discuss driving safety with their teens,= said Tony Summers, the driver education program manager at the High Desert Education Service District. <Don9t be afraid to have this conversation every day. NHTSA offers parents and caregivers helpful tips and a framework to talk to their teen drivers about risky driv- ing behaviors that can lead to fatal consequences.= Because of their lack of experience, teen drivers are a potential danger to themselves and to other drivers, which is why it is so important that parents take time to discuss driving safety with their teens. — Tony Summers Parents play an impor- tant role in helping ensure their teen drivers take smart steps to stay safe on the road. NHTSA gives parents tips on how to talk about safe driving behaviors with their teens, and to address the most dangerous and deadly driving behaviors for teen drivers: alcohol, lack of seat-belt use, distracted driving, speeding, and driving with passengers. NHTSA9s website, www. nhtsa.gov/road-safety/teen- driving, has detailed informa- tion and statistics on teen driv- ing and outlines the basic rules parents can use to help reduce the risks for teen drivers: Impaired Driving: All teens are too young to legally buy, possess, or consume alcohol. However, nation- ally in 2017, 15 percent of teen drivers involved in fatal crashes had alcohol in their system. But alcohol isn9t the only substance that can keep your teen from driving safely: In 2017, 6.5 percent of ado- lescents 12 to 17 years old were marijuana users. Like other drugs, marijuana affects a driver9s ability to react to their surroundings. Driving is a complex task, and marijuana slows reaction time, affect- ing a driver9s ability to drive safely. Remind your teen that driving under the influence of any impairing substance 4 including illicit or prescrip- tion drugs, or over-the-coun- ter medication 4 could have deadly consequences. " Seat Belt Safety: Wearing a seat belt is one of the sim- plest ways for teens to stay safe in a vehicle. Yet too many teens aren9t buckling up. In fact, there were 539 passengers killed in passenger vehicles driven by teen driv- ers, and more than half (60 percent) of those passengers who died were NOT buck- led up at the time of the fatal crash. Even more troubling, when the teen driver was unbuckled, 87 percent of the passengers killed were also unbuckled. Remind your teen that it9s important to buckle up on every trip, every time, no matter what 4 front seat and back. " Distracted Driving: Cell phone use while driving is more than just risky 4 it can be deadly, and is outlawed in 47 states, Washington DC, Year-round FIREWOOD SALES — Kindling — — — SISTERS FOREST PRODUCTS 541-410-4509 SistersForestProducts.com Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Remind your teen about the dangers of texting and using a phone while driving. Distracted driving isn9t limited to cell phone use; other passengers, audio and climate controls in the vehicle, and eating or drinking while driving are all examples of dangerous dis- tractions for teen drivers. In 2017, among teen drivers of passenger vehicles involved in fatal crashes, 9% were reported as distracted at the time of the crash. Also remind your teen that headphones are not appropriate to wear while driving a vehicle, as they can distract a driver from hearing sirens, horns, or other impor- tant sounds. " Speed Limits: Speeding is a critical issue for all driv- ers, especially for teens. In 2017, more than one-quarter (27 percent) of all teen driv- ers of passenger vehicles involved in fatal crashes were speeding at the time of the crash, and males were more likely to be involved in fatal speeding-related crashes than females. Remind your teen to always drive within the speed limit. " Passengers: Passengers in a teen9s car can lead to disas- trous consequences. Research shows that the risk of a fatal crash goes up dramatically in direct relation to the number of passengers in a car. The likelihood of teen drivers engaging in risky behavior triples when traveling with multiple passengers. Parents can help protect their teen drivers by talking with them about these risks. Self-reported surveys show that teens whose parents set firm rules for driving typically engage in less risky driving behaviors and are involved in fewer crashes. Explaining the rules and any other restrictions outlined in Oregon9s graduated driver licensing and the deadly con- sequences of unsafe driving practices can help encourage teens to exhibit safe driving behaviors. <Teens will learn much of this content in drivers9 edu- cation classes, but it9s their home environment that will really help these lessons and rules stick. We need parents to set these rules before hand- ing over the car keys,= Tony Summers said. <We hope par- ents will start the conversa- tion about safe driving during National Teen Driver Safety Week, but then continue the conversations 4 every day throughout the year 4 to help keep their teens safe behind the wheel.= For more information about National Teen Driver Safety Week and to learn safe driving tips to share with your teens, visit www.nhtsa.gov/ road-safety/teen-driving. For information about driver education visit the High Desert Education Service District9s driver education page at www.hddrivered.org or call 541-693-5698. Do you know your agent? Do you understand your policy? Are you overpaying? Call or come in today for a free Farmers Friendly Review 541-588-6245 • 257 S. Pine St., #101 www.farmersagent.com/jrybka AUTO • HOME • LIFE • BUSINESS Want to “Make” New Friends? Crochet Cri er Kits! 5 4 1 - 5 4 9 - 6 0 6 1 • 3 11 W. C A S C AD E AV E . • S I S T E R S , O R
