The biggest risk facing teens today is not drugs or alcohol, school violence or suicide, it’s motor vehicle crashes. Traffic crashes are the number one killer of our young people. In 2003, 3,657 drivers 15 to 20 years old were killed in motor vehicle crashes, and an additional 308,000 were injured. If parents aren’t worried, they should be. A motor vehicle crash is the single most likely event to kill or injure their son or daughter.

To help parents cope with their newly emphasized role as teen driving coach, the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety (NETS) with support from the UPS Foundation, produced the Novice Driver’s Road Map: A Guide for Parents. The Road Map is designed to provide the missing link in a teen driver’s education—practice.

Built around a series of eight practice drives, the Novice Driver’s Road Map provides a list of skills for each drive and instructions on how to perform those skills. Each drive exposes the teen driver to progressively more difficult driving conditions and environments. The guided practice drives provide parents with an organized practical approach to coaching their teen’s drive time. Following the Road Map will increase the number of practice hours.

In addition to these eight practice drives, the Novice Driver's Road Map also includes the Coach's Game Book-a compilation of important "need to know" preliminary information for the adult driving coach. The Game Book provides helpful tips and information to prepare adults for their coaching responsibilities. Know the game rules:

• How to be good role model
• Choosing a driver training progrm
• How to develop your game plan
• Establishing rules for the teen driver
• Understanding driving behaviors that affect the teen's driving ability
• How to choose a safe vehicle for the teen driver
• A Parent-Teen agreement

Teen drivers have the highest crash risk of any age group. Traffic safety experts have found that teens have a more difficult time switching lanes, recovering from an initial driving error, or merging onto a crowded highway. They are more likely to underestimate the dangers associated with hazardous driving situations and are less able to cope with such situations. The problem is worse among 16 year olds who have limited driving experience and often engage in unsafe driving behaviors. In fact, 16 year old drivers are the riskiest of all. Their rate of involvement in fatal crashes is nearly five times that of drivers ages 20 and older.

• Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among 15 to 20 year olds.
• On an average day, 10 teens die in teen-driven vehicles.
• Teens represent 6.4 percent of all licensed drivers, but account for 18 percent of all police-reported crashes and 14 percent of all drivers involved in fatal crashes.
• Teen drivers are more likely to take risks behind the wheel and are less likely to wear seat belts.

Get Involved: Driving is a monumental rite of passage. In order for young people to develop the skills and experience they need to drive safely, teens require hundreds of hours of supervised practice time under varying driving conditions and environments for young people to develop the skills and experience they need to drive safely. Parents have the opportunity to share their years of experience and driver know-how by taking an active role in helping their teen learn how to drive.

Don’t Rely Only On Driver Education/Training Programs: Too often, parents believe that the basic driving skills acquired in a driver education course can substitute for guided practice time. Supervising a teen’s driving not only gives parents a chance to observe the teen’s driving skills but also provides insight into their attitudes, decision-making skills, risk-taking tendencies, and other factors that contribute to crashes.

Be A Good Role Model: Parents have a significant influence on their teen’s driving behaviors. Teens develop driving habits based on their parents’ behaviors, whether they are good or bad. According to a 2004 teen driving study conducted by the Liberty Mutual Insurance Group and the Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), high school and middle school students overwhelmingly say their parents are or will be the biggest influence on how they drive.

Continue to Monitor Teen Driving Even After Licensure: Teen drivers require continued monitoring even after they earn full licensure and begin driving unsupervised. Parents should continue to periodically supervise their teen’s driving at every opportunity to ensure that their teens are still practicing safe driving behaviors.

The majority of parents are concerned about their young drivers and want to ensure their safety behind the wheel, but are faced with many constraints to providing adequate guidance and practice including:

• Lack of time for both adults and novice drivers
• Pressures of work and day-to-day living
• Lack of knowledge, tools, and resources on how to provide guided practice
• The stress of spending time in a car with their teen

Click Here to Order the Novice Driver's Road Map Online, or call us at 703-891-6005!