Don't Drink and Drive- Teen Driver Safety

Education and safety programs for teens have done a tremendous job in reducing underage drinking and driving incidents, as the percentage of high school age kids who drink and drive has been cut in half since 1991. But there is still work to be done to keep our young citizens safe on the road. Even now, approximately 1 in 10 teen drivers admit to getting behind the wheel impaired according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ^[1].

If you’re worried that your teenager might be in this minority, there are things you can do to help them understand the dangers of such a decision. We all want our friends and family to get home safely, and here at iRideSafe™.com we have lots of great resources on teen driver safety and how to be responsible behind the wheel. If you are a parent of a novice driver, consider the following tips to make sure they are safe and alert behind the wheel:

Watch our safety videos together and start a dialogue about safe driving practices.
Enroll your teen in a defensive driving course or a program like Alive at 25.
Offer incentives to your teen for taking a pledge to never get behind the wheel impaired.
Be available to come pick up your teen if they don’t have a safe and sober ride home.
Download the free SaferRide app (Android™ and iOS) on your teen’s phone, which allows users to call a taxi or a friend while automatically identifying the locations, so they can be picked up.
Set a good example for them by driving safely yourself- see our general driver safety section for more tips.
Make sure they know the Georgia driving laws and consequences for breaking them.

Teen drivers, even without alcohol in their systems, are 3x more likely to crash than experienced adult drivers. And when you add alcohol to the mix, young people (ages 16-20) are 17x more likely to die in an accident when their BAC is 0.08% or more, according to the CDC.

While it’s not an ideal situation, it’s important to understand why some teenagers choose to drink and engage in other illegal behaviors. So what can you do as a parent?

The best place to start is simply being open and available to your son or daughter. Make them feel heard and make sure they know that they can come to you with any problems or questions. If you have an open and nonjudgmental relationship, your teen is more likely to share their fears or concerns about drunk driving, how to get home safely, and is less likely to engage in reckless behaviors.

Because we care about the safety of our young people here in Georgia, the state legislature instituted a graduated driver’s licensing program known as TADRA (The Teenage and Adult Driver Responsibility Act), which you can read about here. Gradually teaching our teens to drive safely and earn driving privileges has been shown to reduce the number of auto accidents, fatal crashes, and DUIs.

At iRideSafe™, we hope you and your family are always safe!

For more information regarding state laws in Georgia, click here:

http://ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/bystate/ga.html

Additional Sources:

Georgia Department of Driver Services

NHTSA: “SaferRide” Mobile App

DMV

Teen Driver Safety Home

Other Resources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Vital Signs: Teen Drinking and Driving; A Dangerous Mix. Atlanta (GA); 2012 Oct. 2. [cited 2016 March 25].

Available at URL: http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/teendrinkinganddriving/

References

Available at URL: http://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/teendrinkinganddriving/