Safe Teen Driving Blog

The hazard drivers create when they text or talk on cell phones has received considerable attention in the popular press recently. However, a more common distracted driving hazard is reaching for an item in the vehicle. Though cell phone use while driving is a significant problem, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) studies indicate that it is a relatively small proportion of the distracted driving issue.

Driving distractions occur anytime something takes your eyes off the road, your hands off the steering wheel, or your mental attention from the task. Some distractions involve two or even all three of these. When you look for a particular song on a CD or MP3 player, your eyes turn from the road ahead, you remove at least one hand from the steering wheel, and you are temporarily preoccupied by the task of searching for the song you want to hear.

Other "reaching" distractions include:

Eating

Smoking

Manipulating the controls of the aforementioned stereo, an in-vehicle navigation system or the climate control system

Reaching for a fallen object

NHTSA estimates that drivers participate in potentially distracting activities about 30% of the time their vehicles are moving. Distraction may result in:

• loss of vehicle control


• unintended speed changes


• leaving the lane of travel


• missed opportunities to respond to changes in the driving scene

Though a motor vehicle crash caused by a driver reaching for something in the vehicle is not easily proved unless the driver admits to it, most drivers are aware of having driven while distracted by reaching for something in the vehicle.

"Reaching for something" does not have to mean reaching for an inanimate object. When they reach out to soothe, protect or discipline their children and pets, drivers’ attention is removed from the driving scene. Driving requires all your concentration, and parents should teach their children this and reinforce the lesson when necessary. Children should be fastened into appropriate safety restraint systems. While distractions aren't good for you as a driver, they are great for children as passengers; DVDs, books, games, and small toys can keep them occupied until you reach your destination. If your children need attention, find a safe place to pull off the roadway. Your furry friend can travel safely in a pet carrier or safety harness. Never let your pet ride in your lap or roam around the vehicle while you drive.

Other ways to manage distractions include adjusting all of the vehicle's controls before you start to drive and during stops at traffic lights, asking passengers to assist you when you need to get something inside your vehicle, and taking breaks to eat, drink and smoke.

Learning how to manage the distraction of reaching for things in your vehicle is a daunting task because it occurs so frequently. But doing so will allow you to keep you, your passengers, and other road users safe when you're behind the wheel.

Labels: distracted driving, distractions, driver safety, hazards, teens and distracted driving

They are popping up everywhere; on college campuses, in urban areas, neighborhoods, and in retirement communities. Whether it's for fun, cost savings, environmental considerations or out of practicality, scooters and mopeds are growing in use and popularity. While these scooters are zipping about, everyone on the roadways needs to take extra precautions with mopeds and scooters in the driving environment.

Motorist should keep in mind that it is difficult to judge how fast a scooter or moped is traveling.

They are also smaller, difficult to see, and appear farther away than they really are. Maintain your scan of the road to ensure you are aware of their location and continually check your blind spots. Always manage your space cushion and continue to adjust with the flow of traffic as you never know when a scooter will need to make an evasive maneuver. Increase your following distance to a minimum of four seconds in ideal weather conditions and 5 seconds in inclement weather and at night. Even wind can affect the stability and direction a scooter travels. Dim your high beams at night when approaching a moped or scooter as they are more susceptible to their blinding affect.

If traveling by a moped or scooter take extra precautions. Check to make sure you have met all the legal licensing, registration and equipment requirements for your local and state area before travelling on the road. Some vehicles with a motor capacity of 50cc are classified as a motorcycle and require a Motorcycle Safety Course. Know before you go. It is helpful to take a motorcycle practice test prior to taking your safety course.

Make sure your equipment is working and in excellent condition. Poor tire tread, improper inflation, worn brakes and equipment malfunctions can be huge problems on the road. Evaluate your load, cargo and whether to have a passenger as they directly affect your vehicles stability, performance and ability to maneuver.

Wear clothing that will give the greatest protection in a fall. Choose clothing that is light, bright and snug. If traveling during dawn, dusk or nighttime hours, add reflective tape to clothing for increased visibility. Consider boots, a jacket, long pants and gloves. Protect your eyes with safety glasses or goggles.

Head injury is a leading cause of death and disability in moped and motor scooter crashes. Wearing a helmet is the single most effective means to prevent head injury. Ensure that your helmet fits properly and is Department of Transportation (DOT) approved. Helmet use is mandatory in most states.

On the roadway, give yourself plenty of space from all sides. Travel in the center of the lane and if riding with other motor scooters travel in a staggered formation. Always drive defensively; looking for an escape route, should you need to make an evasive maneuver. Keep a three to five second visual scan and be sure to check your blind spots. Turning your headlights on during the day can improve your ability to be seen by pedestrians and other vehicles. When riding, your hands should be on the handlebars and your feet on the floorboards. Watch out for road hazards and defects. Signal well in advance, and consider using hand signals for extra safety.

Be extra cautious when approaching driveways, parking lots, and intersections. Reduce your speed for lower visibility conditions such as dawn, dusk, nighttime and poor weather. Avoid having sudden starts, braking and quick turns as they cause instability.

When reaching your destination, park on level ground, turn off the engine and if you have any passengers let them get off the scooter first.

With awareness and a few extra precautions, mopeds and scooters can operate safely on our roads.

Labels: defensive driving, driver safety, motorcycle, motorcycle practice test, safety, scooter

With cold and flu season here, many drivers are hurrying to drug stores and pharmacies for tissues, hand sanitizer, and over-the-counter medications to relieve symptoms such as sneezing, coughing, fever, and body aches. Unfortunately, alleviating cold and flu symptoms won't necessarily make them safer drivers.

Colds are characterized by sore throat, sneezing and runny nose, and coughing.

Although many people have little to no fever with colds, these effects can be debilitating. Aside from the distraction these symptoms cause, drivers are often irritable due to their degree of discomfort and drowsy because the symptoms make it difficult to sleep well. This collection of problems can mean that these drivers take chances they wouldn't ordinarily take, such as turning left in front of oncoming traffic or running red traffic lights, in an effort to get home quickly.

Flu symptoms commonly include coughing and body aches, often with a high fever and chills. In addition to feeling ill-tempered and sleepy, these drivers may also suffer from disorientation and dizziness. Driving effects could include slower reaction time, poor coordination, and impaired judgment.

In an effort to continue their normal activities, some drivers choose to take over-the-counter medications to ease their cold or flu symptoms. However, these medications do not typically eliminate symptoms. They also wear off quickly and can have side effects that compromise the user's ability to drive safely, such as:

• Dizziness or lightheadedness
  
• Loss of muscle control and motor coordination
  
• Increased reaction time
  
• Jittery feelings and nervousness
  
• Drowsiness
  

It's best to stay off the road when you have a cold or the flu. Seek support from family and friends by asking for a ride to the doctor's office if you need to go and arranging carpools for your children; you can repay these favors when you're feeling better. Getting plenty of rest is the best way for you to recover from the cold or flu quickly so you can safely get back on the road.

Labels: cold and flu season, driver safety, driving effects, drowsy driving

Many students look forward to spring break as a rite of passage. Taking a vacation from academics just as the weather turns warmer is a welcome break; it's a time to hang out with friends and relax. Students often travel to a beachfront community so they can spend the week lying on the sand, playing beach volleyball, and participating in water sports.

Businesses in beachfront communities typically welcome spring breakers. But the increase in all types of traffic can be frustrating for year-round residents, and spring breakers themselves may drive carelessly or recklessly. This can prove deadly for pedestrians, who must often cross beachfront avenues to access the beach or nearby businesses.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2007, 4,654 pedestrians were killed and 70,000 pedestrians were injured in traffic crashes in the United States. On average, a pedestrian is killed in a traffic crash every 113 minutes and injured in a traffic crash every eight minutes. Forty-eight percent of all pedestrian fatalities in 2007 occurred on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday.

Tips for Pedestrians

Pedestrian safety is an important, though often unconsidered, aspect of spring break safety. As a pedestrian, follow these tips to make the most of your spring break:

Put safety first. You are on spring break to have fun, but disregarding your own safety could result in tragedy.

Don't assume that motorists will yield to you when you are at an intersection or even in a crosswalk. Be especially careful at intersections where drivers may be turning onto another street. If you are in their path, they may not see you in time to stop.

Use a designated crosswalk when possible. Stop and look left, right, and left again before crossing.

Stand on the curb or off the roadway while you make sure it is safe to cross the street. If your view of the street is blocked, stop when you reach the edge line of the object and look around it before entering the roadway.

Include motorcyclists and bicyclists in your visual search before you cross the street. A collision with any other vehicle, even one with only two wheels, could result in serious injury or death.

If there is no sidewalk and you must walk in the street, walk facing traffic and be especially careful.

At night, try to cross the street only in well-lit areas. Increase your visibility to others by carrying a flashlight.

Tips for Motorists

Of all the highway users, pedestrians are the most vulnerable, so drivers have a special responsibility to watch for and protect pedestrians.

Let go of assumptions you may have about pedestrians so you can put their safety first. Many pedestrians are not fully aware of traffic laws, including those that pertain to signals. Many do not know the distance needed to stop a moving vehicle. Never assume that pedestrians will move out of the way. Be ready to stop to allow a pedestrian to cross safely.

Many pedestrians take for granted that drivers will yield the right of way to anyone in the crosswalk. When they cross at an intersection with a Walk signal, pedestrians may not even look for oncoming traffic. Always watch for pedestrians in case they are not watching for you.

Pedestrians waiting to cross the street often stand in the street instead of on the curb. Groups of pedestrians often separate when they are crossing the road. Some may even dash across the street without warning. When you see pedestrians waiting to cross, cover your brake and remain alert.

Be especially vigilant about pedestrians at night, even in well-lit areas. It is often difficult to identify pedestrians at night.

Labels: driver safety, pedestrian, traffic

Many spring breakers drive to and from their vacation destinations. Spring break drivers are often relatively inexperienced due to their youth and may have difficulty navigating hazardous driving situations. One way to manage the risk is to spot impaired drivers early so you can increase your space cushion. This way, if the impaired driver causes a crash, you are much less likely to be part of it.

Although the term "impaired" typically refers to drivers who are under the influence of alcohol, for the purposes of this article, it refers to any driver who is exhibiting difficulty with the driving process. A driver may be "impaired" by drowsiness, confusion, distractions inside or outside their vehicle, aggression, talking on a cellular phone, or a variety of other causes. For those who are sharing the road with an impaired driver, the most important issue is that the other driver is impaired; the specific reason isn't as significant, because the reactions of other drivers should be the same regardless of the source of the impairment.

You should scan the general behavior of other vehicles when you search the driving scene, noticing any drivers who are:

Drifting within their lane

Speeding or driving at erratic speeds (speeding up, then slowing suddenly)

Weaving in and out of lanes

Exhibiting odd behavior, such as stopping for a green traffic light

Displaying aggressive behavior, such as following too closely

Once you recognize that a driver is impaired, you must increase the amount of space between your vehicle and theirs. Motorists are often tempted to pass a driver who may be impaired, but this option is dangerous because it decreases the space between you and the impaired driver, even if only temporarily. The point of identifying impaired drivers is to note their unpredictability. If the impaired driver makes another mistake while you are passing, you could be involved in a crash.

Take the following actions when you recognize an impaired driver:

Reduce your speed. This will increase your following distance if you are behind the impaired driver. Also, reducing your speed will allow you to more safely take other actions, such as changing lanes.

Continue scanning the driving scene. Don't get so distracted by the impaired driver that you cause a crash yourself.

Increase your following distance from other vehicles. If you tailgate the vehicle in front of you, you will be forced to focus on that vehicle to avoid rear-ending it.

Once you've increased your distance from the impaired driver, check the space cushion all around your vehicle - in front, behind, and on both sides. Make sure you haven't compromised your space cushion in your effort to move away from the impaired driver. Make any necessary corrections carefully. Remember to signal for all lane changes.

Resume your scan of the driving scene. Impaired drivers are common in popular vacation spots.

If you think an impaired driver is in imminent danger of causing a crash, ask a passenger to note the license plate number, a description of the vehicle, and the vehicle's location and direction of travel. Have your passenger contact law enforcement, or pull off the road so you can safely make the call yourself.

Make your spring break a safe, healthy, relaxed vacation using defensive driving techniques from the National Safety Commission.

Labels: driver safety, impaired driver

posted by NSC - Traffic Safety  # 1:28 PM

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