Driving Tips -- Teen Drivers

Need driving tips for that new driver in the family? -- Being a parent is not for the faint of heart and NOTHING could really prepare me for the TERROR of this moment.........

What am I talking about? --- sitting in the passenger side of the car as my redhead daughter drives me around for the first time...She'd just gotten her LEARNER'S PERMIT! Okay, I know she took "Driver's Ed" at school and they let her drive around town, but now it's ME in the car!!!
(Actually for 2 redhead daughters = My gray hair?)

You may laugh, but I've never felt such a loss of control in my life. She starts the car, carefully drives away, and I'm trying to look calm. As one parent put it, stomping down on the IPB (Imaginary Parent Brake), the fake brake that isn't there on my side to slow us down, makes my foot ache.

How can this little girl be old enough to drive? Didn't we just celebrate her 8th birthday? ..... This milestone is scary! Help.....

Did you know that motor vehicle crashes are the No.1 cause of death and injury of teens in the United States -- more responsible for teenage deaths than violence, alcohol, drugs, and suicide?! And, yes, steps can be taken to encourage young people to drive safely.

Whether you are a parent, family member, friend, or instructor helping that youngster drive this 'potential weapon' around the streets, I thought I'd pass along a few teen driving tips I've run across.

CHILDREN WATCH HOW YOU DRIVE.
Whether you like it or not, you are a role model.
So, DO YOU....

• Drive recklessly, weaving in and out?
• Text and drive?
• Cuss and swear at other drivers?
• Follow too close?
• Break traffic laws?
• Try to beat the yellow lights?
• Talk on your cell phone while driving?
• Zoom or floor the accelerator, screech to a halt?
• Operate an MP3 player, game, radio, or distracting device while driving?
• Steer with your knees while doing hair/makeup, getting a CD to play, or grabbing something? (we've all done it)
  

CAR CRASHES
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety website, the leading cause of deaths for young people 15-20 years old is traffic crashes. The risk of teens getting into a crash is very high during that 1st year of driving.

They say the leading causes of traffic accidents are:

• inexperience
• immaturity
• speeding
• driving while drinking or on drugs
• not wearing seat belts
• drowsiness
• nighttime driving or times of limited visibility
• being distracted (cell phone, music, car passengers)

BEFORE YOU HAND OVER THOSE CAR KEYS consider a few other pre- driving tips:

** Visit your local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) for the “new driver’s booklet” to study.

** Find out about your State's driver's licensing laws, (usually available from your State's Department of Transportation, which often have additional safe driving tips). Some states ease teens into driving by enacting Graduated Driver Licensing laws that allow them to get their license in 3 stages. These laws deal with the number of supervised hours of driving, number of passengers allowed, cell phone usage, and more. Support your State's passage of such laws if they don't have them in place.

** They must take a Driver’s Education course (often helps with car insurance rates). Some high schools offer them and there are Driving Schools in most cities that teach safe driving, proven driving tips, and hands-on practice.

** Visit your car insurance agent to find out their rates for insuring that young driver and how to bring costs down. They also often have helpful information and helpful driving tips for all ages.

** Educate the new driver about the car they will be driving, how things work, adding gas and oil, changing a flat tire, jump a dead battery, what not to do, etc.

** What to do in an accident and who to call for help

** Have your new driver sign a "DRIVER CONTRACT" before driving starts. The new driver and their parent/guardians should sit down, explain each item, and then have them sign it. If the terms of the contract are broken, then consequences and loss of privileges should be clearly spelled out. The Department of Transportation for many States have contracts you can download for free. Usually these contracts include:

• Which car they can drive
• Where they can drive and how far
• Care of the care (adding gas, oil changes, maintenance) and who pays this
• Keeping it clean and tidy
• Car insurance – who pays?
• Any passengers allowed? Who? How many?
• No drinking or drugs use while driving
• No texting or cell phone use while driving and (See my page on texting and Oprah’s Challenge to not text and drive).
• Curfews
• Consequences of breaking any of the rules
• Seat belts to be worn by everyone in the car at all times

NEED A CHUCKLE?...

This might do the trick...These aren't specific driving tips, but you just might learn a thing or two as you read some quotes from accident reports submitted to various insurance companies by hapless policyholders...(Apparently appeared in "Aide Magazine" some years ago)

• "I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in-law, and headed over the embankment."

• "The guy was all over the road; I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him."

• "I collided with a stationary truck coming the other way."

• "The other car collided with mine without giving warning of its intentions."

• "Coming home, I drove into the wrong house and collided with a tree I don't have."

• "In my attempt to kill a fly, I drove into a telephone pole."

• "I had been driving for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had the accident."

• "To avoid hitting the bumper of the car in front, I struck the pedestrian."

• "My car was legally parked as it backed into the other vehicle."

• "An invisible care came out of nowhere, struck my vehicle, and vanished."

• "I was sure the old fellow would never make it to the other side of the road when I struck him."

• "The pedestrian had no idea which direction to run, so I ran over him."

  

• "The indirect cause of this accident was a little guy in a small care with a big mouth."

• "I was thrown from my car as it left the road. I was later found in a ditch by some stray cows."

• "The telephone pole was approaching. I was attempting to swerve out of its way, when it struck my front end."

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