It has been said many times that children are our most precious resource. While parents throughout time have loved their children enormously, today’s parents have taken this saying to heart in more visible ways than previous generations. From the “Caution - Baby on Board” window decals of the early 1980s to the ubiquitous “My child is an honor student at…” bumper stickers of today, modern parents use the family car as a billboard to showcase their parental pride and their children’s accomplishments.

But the same motor vehicle that goes from school to soccer practice to piano lessons ­- in which Mom, Dad and the kids seem to live ­- may also be the vehicle in which our teenagers die. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for young people 15 to 20 years of age, causing roughly one-third of all fatalities in this age group. In a recent year, almost 7,000 young people age 15-20 died in motor vehicle crashes. Two-thirds of them were not wearing seatbelts.  Even though this age group makes up only seven percent of the driving population, they are involved in 14 percent of all traffic fatalities. In that same year, teens were involved in more than two million non-fatal traffic crashes. 

Chances are, your community has been struck by a tragic accident involving a teenage friend, classmate or family member. You and your teenager may well know someone personally who has been injured… or has died… as a result of a motor vehicle crash. Here is an on-topic article:

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/womenfamilies/articles/44908/article.html

The National Safety Council is taking the lead in the effort to confront this crisis on a national level. They have as their mission to inform teens and their parents that they can beat the odds. They believe that, with proper training, it os possible to:

• Reduce teen drivers’ exposure to risk

• Modify risky driving behavior

• Develop teen driver skills and experience

Check out their Teen Driver Initiative page here:

http://teendriver.nsc.org

And check out a summary of their Family Guide to Teen Driver Safety (full version available for purchase) here:

http://www.nsc.org/transportation/teen_driver/teen_driving_guide.aspx

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