The end of summer and Back to school comes with increased congestion and changes in driving patterns on the road, especially in school zones and neighborhoods. It is never more important for drivers to slow down and pay attention than when kids are present, especially before and after school. You can make sure you do your part in keeping the roads safe by following these tips.
- Be aware of pedestrians.
- Avoid distraction (phone, breakfast, coffee, makeup) one moment of distraction could mean the life of a child.
- Leave 10 Minutes early so you will not be rushing.
- Obey School bus laws.
- Be aware of decreased speed limits in school zones.
- Come to a complete stop at stop signs.
- Check for children before backing out of your driveway.
- Obey Crossing guards at all times.
- Turn on Do Not Disturb on your Phone while Driving!
Teens and Distracted Driving
More and More teens are driving themselves to school each day. Due to the increased number of cars on the road during back to school and the inexperience of teen drivers it is extremely important to go over road safety with your teen over and over again. Teenagers by nature feel they are invincible and may feel they are above these conversations, but have them anyway!
The fatal crash rate for teen drivers 16-19 years of age in the United States is three times the rate for drivers over 20. Distracted driving is a huge factor – 56% of teens admit to talking on the phone while driving and 1 in 3 teens admit to texting while driving. Setting ground rules with your teen driver just may save a life!
- Go over the basic driving safety tips above but also stress the following:
- Leave 10 Minutes early to avoid rushing.
- Insist on seatbelts, although it is the law, 13% of teen drivers admit to not wearing their seatbelt.
- No phone use/no texting EVER
- Have your teen turn on DND on their phone while Driving -it will send a message that they are driving and cannot be reached at the moment. (Choose settings on the phone then select Do not disturb and follow prompts)
- Limit the number of passengers your teen can drive with; having friends in the car adds to distraction from the road.
- Obey the posted speed limit especially in school zones- studies show that crash risk for teens increase incrementally with each mile per hour over the speed limit.
- NO DRINKING NO DRUGS NO EXCEPTIONS
- Use an APP that monitors a device that plugs into the diagnostic port in most modern cars
Note plans vary from a monthly purchase plan to outright purchase of device, and some actually can be purchased through your insurance company lowering your insurance costs if you will participate in the program for safe driving.
Depending upon the Interest, HST may begin to offer these services through our partner Alarm.com, please let us know if you have some interest in these options and we will add you to our list, for when it becomes available.
