|
Dearborn, MI -- For teenagers, obtaining a driver's license
is a significant rite of passage, a sign that they're growing
up and ready to accept the responsibility of operating a motor
vehicle. Unfortunately, this exciting time for teenagers can
also be dangerous. According to data from the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), more than 6,000 teens
die each year from injuries resulting from car crashes - making
it the number one killer of teens in America. Yet, a recent national
survey by Wirthlin Worldwide shows that many people underestimate
the challenges novice drivers face. When asked, 56 percent of
Americans named drug abuse as the leading health threat teenagers
face, with only 13 percent identifying teen driving crashes as
the number one threat.
To help raise awareness and fight back against this serious
youth health issue, Ford Motor Company, along with the Governors
Highway Safety Association (GHSA) and the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA), today announced the launch of Real
World Driver: Driving Skills for Life at a press conference
in Dearborn, Michigan.
 |
|
Susan Cischke, Kathryn Swanson, Don McNamara,
Chief Geraci and Tony Bucko. |
Real World Driver is a multi-year, educational campaign
aimed at teens, parents and the education community. The program
includes a teacher's guide, video and other materials that are
being distributed to every public high school in the country
(more than 20,000 schools). An interactive Web site -- www.realworlddriver.com --
also has been launched to give students and parents more information
about driving skills and provide visitors the opportunity to
take a quiz online for a chance to win exciting prizes.
"Unfortunately, car crashes remain the number one killer of
our teens. Yet, the good news is that most of the crashes and
resulting injuries and deaths could be prevented if teenagers
better understood the necessary skills for safely driving motor
vehicles," Susan Cischke, vice president of Environmental and
Safety Engineering said at today's launch. "Real World Driver has
been designed to illustrate for young drivers safe driving techniques
in key areas that safety experts say are of particular importance
to novice drivers."
Four Critical Driving Skills
To design the program, Ford and GHSA convened a distinguished panel of safety
experts that included NHTSA, the International Association of Chiefs of Police
Highway Safety Committee and The Transportation Safety Association. According
to the Real World Driver Advisory Board*, the four key driving skills young
drivers should master are: hazard recognition, vehicle handling, space management
and speed management.
"Our Advisory Board identified specific actions, like left turns,
that can turn deadly for teens due to their lack of awareness
and experience in those areas," Cischke said. "Real World
Driver's goal is to turn these four areas into four 'driving
skills for life' by focusing on the skills that are most likely
to prevent crashes and save teens' lives. But awareness is only
part of the solution. There is no substitute for behind-the-wheel
training and practice."
Graduated Licensing and Extended Education
Ford partnered with GHSA, which represents state highway safety offices, to
ensure that Real World Driver is promoted in states and local communities. "We're
excited to partner with Ford on this program and hope it will help states
raise awareness of the teen driving issue as they work to strengthen their
graduated driver's licensing laws," said GHSA Chair Kathryn Swanson. "We
are also optimistic that Real World Driver will encourage teens to
get more actual driving time with a focus on specific driving skills."
Ford, GHSA and other safety experts agree that the sensible
way for teens to learn driving is to phase them into it. Most
states now have graduated driver's licensing (GDL) laws that
do just that, restrict driving in risky times and under risky
circumstances until responsible performance is demonstrated over
a period of time. Ford and GHSA support graduated driving laws,
and hope Real World Driver will help augment them by offering
guidance to parents and teens on what skills should be learned
and practiced.
Wirthlin's research also indicated that just 11 percent of parents
and 12 percent of all adults are satisfied with the training
resources available to first-time drivers. Moreover, nearly all
parents (94 percent) are concerned about their teens driving
independently. "Parents are justly concerned that their young
drivers aren't receiving enough supervised time behind the wheel
before they take to the nation's busy streets and highways alone,
and with friends," said NHTSA Regional Administrator Don McNamara. "Programs
like Real World Driver can give teens more practice in
useful safe driving skills."
Today's launch of Real World Driver at Ford Motor Company's
Dearborn Proving Ground also included a hands-on safe driving
demonstration for a group of Michigan teens. Each teen was paired
with a driving expert from Car and Driver magazine in
order to gain experience in the four skill areas:
- Hazard Recognition: Recognizing
and anticipating hazards, such as distractions and intersections,
and dealing with them successfully. Safe techniques for approaching
and turning left at intersections are examples of what is addressed.
- Vehicle Handling: Learning how
to handle different vehicles competently under a range of driving
circumstances and maneuvers. Vehicle balance, type and braking
are all covered.
- Space Management: Maintaining safe
spacing with other traffic and managing space in an emergency.
This section addresses the importance of positioning your vehicle
safely in traffic.
- Speed Management: Driving at speeds
that are right for conditions and maintaining control in dangerous
situations such as skids. Issues addressed are centered on
knowing the road, letting others know your intentions and knowing
how to react to other drivers' actions.
Ford, GHSA and Car and Driver will take the demonstrations on
the road this fall to major cities around the country to ensure
that teens nationwide have the opportunity to practice the four
critical driving skills first-hand.
Buckle Up
While hands-on, behind-the-wheel training and educational materials are important
elements of any safe driving program, Cischke reminds all drivers that safety
belts continue to provide the single, most effective protection in any vehicle
crash.
"Parents should insist that their teenagers buckle up," Cischke
says. "The safety belt is the single best way to avoid getting
hurt in a crash. In addition, teens need to be reminded constantly
that it is illegal for anyone under 21 to drink, much less to
drink and drive."
###
NOTE: Photos from the event will be available for download for
your free and unrestricted use at www.realworlddriver.com/ shortly
after the event concludes.
See also GHSA's Real World Driver site
* Real World Driver Advisory Board members include representatives
from the following organizations: Ford Motor Company; the Governors
Highway Safety Association; Great American; The Hartford; International
Association of Chiefs of Police, Highway Safety Committee;
Liberty Mutual Insurance; National Highway Traffic Safety Administration;
Students Against Destructive Decisions; Top Driver; Transportation
Safety Association; Travelers Property Casualty; and Young
Drivers.
** A nationally representative sample of one thousand and
one (1001) interviews was conducted among the general public
during December 13 - 16, 2002. For a sample of this size, the
error due to sampling is +3.1 percentage points. Included in
the nationally representative general public sample were 185
parents of teens. To ensure that there was a representative
size of parents of teenage children WirthlinWorldwide conducted
an oversample of 175 interviews with parents of teens, for
a total of 360. For a sample of this size, the error due to
sampling is +5.2. When reporting on American adults, we are
referring to the total sample of 1001, excluding the oversample
of parents of teens. When reporting on parents of teens we
are reporting on the total sample of 360 parents of teenagers.
Real World Driver - 50
State Statistics
15-20 year olds killed in automobile crashes
State |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
|
Alabama |
181 |
165 |
168 |
|
Alaska |
14 |
28 |
12 |
|
Arizona |
134 |
140 |
151 |
|
Arkansas |
90 |
87 |
106 |
|
California |
496 |
498 |
567 |
|
Colorado |
93 |
84 |
115 |
|
Connecticut |
39 |
39 |
59 |
|
Delaware |
11 |
25 |
22 |
|
Dist. of Col. |
6 |
5 |
7 |
|
Florida |
366 |
378 |
379 |
|
Georgia |
231 |
228 |
244 |
|
Hawaii |
13 |
18 |
18 |
|
Idaho |
62 |
41 |
48 |
|
Illinois |
223 |
198 |
224 |
|
Indiana |
169 |
157 |
162 |
|
Iowa |
82 |
93 |
63 |
|
Kansas |
98 |
92 |
98 |
|
Kentucky |
131 |
145 |
135 |
|
Louisiana |
159 |
152 |
148 |
|
Maine |
35 |
29 |
34 |
|
Maryland |
117 |
102 |
101 |
|
Massachusetts |
73 |
66 |
81 |
|
Michigan |
181 |
220 |
202 |
|
Minnesota |
100 |
107 |
92 |
|
Mississippi |
134 |
138 |
110 |
|
Missouri |
197 |
229 |
200 |
|
Montana |
50 |
40 |
29 |
|
Nebraska |
56 |
56 |
47 |
|
Nevada |
33 |
43 |
33 |
|
New Hampshire |
22 |
19 |
19 |
|
New Jersey |
72 |
89 |
100 |
|
New Mexico |
71 |
64 |
50 |
|
New York |
232 |
195 |
235 |
|
North Carolina |
215 |
212 |
220 |
|
North Dakota |
25 |
13 |
17 |
|
Ohio |
258 |
233 |
214 |
|
Oklahoma |
124 |
116 |
115 |
|
Oregon |
53 |
78 |
62 |
|
Pennsylvania |
261 |
237 |
251 |
|
Rhode Island |
6 |
15 |
16 |
|
South Carolina |
152 |
127 |
155 |
|
South Dakota |
26 |
25 |
23 |
|
Tennessee |
200 |
194 |
192 |
|
Texas |
574 |
634 |
618 |
|
Utah |
65 |
57 |
54 |
|
Vermont |
17 |
18 |
9 |
|
Virginia |
119 |
174 |
144 |
|
Washington |
94 |
110 |
108 |
|
West Virginia |
71 |
56 |
54 |
|
Wisconsin |
117 |
142 |
103 |
|
Wyoming |
30 |
23 |
18 |
|
NATIONAL |
6,378 |
6,434 |
6,442 |
Source: Fatality Analysis Reporting System,
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
|