"Green" Drivers: Proceed with Caution

Kelly Messerschmidt
Technical Communications Manager
Messerschmidt Safety Consultants

Every year, close to 11,000 "green" drivers - teen and young adults ages 15-24 - die in motor vehicle accidents. This is the equivalent of an airplane-full of young people dying each week.

At the "Alive at 25" defensive driving class, put on by the National Safety Council (NSC) and State Farm Insurance, in Birmingham, Alabama, June 14-16, 2011, instructor Janice Leverette told an audience of teen drivers that "the person right next to you is 'the other person.'" And that YOU are the "other person" to everyone else. She explained that you cannot make assumptions about what other people on the road are going to do.... You don't know what they are thinking, or what challenges they are facing behind their own steering wheel. However, while you can't control other drivers, it is your number one responsibility to control yourself and your vehicle. In order to arrive at your destination alive, you need to stay alert, attentive, and understand the hazards and consequences of what you do. Because no one plans to get into an accident.

During the class, the teens shared some of the challenges they've experienced and observed as new drivers. Distractions, lack of experience, "other people" on the road, inattention, arrogance, and feeling like certain rules of the road are "optional" were just some of the challenges this group has witnessed.

"Alive at 25" is an important and valuable class. As an adult sitting in on the class, it was a real eye-opener - and it served as a huge reminder to me that defensive driving is imperative. Something that surprised me (and also took me back down memory lane to my own teen years), was listening to the teens report having seen a number of seriously risky driving behaviors.

Bearing in mind that the oldest teens in today's class were 17, here are some of the things these young adults reported having SEEN other drivers doing: using drugs and/or alcohol, texting and using iPods while driving, dancing in the car, driving "crazy" for "fun," and taking risks for the thrill of it. As Ms. Leverette pointed out to the group, "you are your number one risk on the road." However, you should make the choices that will allow you to survive to grow old.

Strategies that were discussed in the class to help drivers be safer included:

• Keeping a following distance of at least three seconds;
• Slowing down in road construction zones;
• Paying attention while on the road and especially during poor weather conditions;
• Being very careful of pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcycles, and also slow-moving vehicles;
• Not participating in distracting activities;
• Watching out for hazards and having a plan;
• Not speeding;
• Taking responsibility for your decisions;
• Buckling up every time you get in a vehicle.

The class participants were very engaged in the class, and they participated actively with each other. I believe the class was very successful in presenting powerful material to teens in a way that was both candid and meaningful.

It's not too late to register for one of tomorrow's sessions of Alive at 25; tomorrow's sessions are geared to new drivers and attendance is free. The sessions will take place at 2125 Data Office Drive, Suite 102, in Hoover, Alabama. There is a session tomorrow at 8am and another one at 1pm. The class is three hours long. Refreshments are provided, and each participant receives a t-shirt and a red thumb ring to serve as a reminder to not text and drive. Call 1-800-457-7233 to sign up or to learn more.

If you can't make it for these new-driver sessions of "Alive at 25," there will be more offered this October during Teen Driver Week. However, the class is also offered to experienced drivers, as well as to people who have received moving violations. To view contact information for signing up or learning more, please visit the National Safety Council’s Alabama Chapter online.

FocusDriven: Raising Awareness About Distracted Driving

FocusDriven is a national nonprofit organization created by US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and the National Safety Council to address the issue of distracted driving. People who talk or text on their cell phone while driving are considered distracted drivers. Distracted drivers can create dangerous situations on the road and have caused an increase in fatal car crashes. The formation of FocusDriven was formally announced last Tuesday.

The mission of FocusDriven is to advocate for victims of motor vehicle crashes caused by people using their cell phone while driving, and also to increase public awareness about the dangers of cell phone use while driving. Increased public awareness could help advance public policies to address distracted driving as well as ultimately lead to the group’s ability to expand their mission to include educational components and technology solutions.

Results of a public opinion poll conducted by Nationwide Insurance show 81% of the public admitting to talking on a cell phone while driving. This statistic, as well as other important information, can be found at FocusDriven’s website.

Additional information can be found at the Department of Transportation’s website on distracted driving.

Learn more about an example of technology aimed at helping individuals avoid the temptation to talk or text while driving--and also aimed at helping businesses enforce policies against distracted driving--at the ZoomSafer website.

Results from CVSA's Roadcheck 2009

On June 2-4, 2009, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) conducted Roadcheck 2009. According to the CVSA, the yearly Roadcheck program "is the largest targeted enforcement program on commercial vehicles in the world, with approximately 14 trucks or buses being inspected, on average, every minute..." Click here to read CVSA's description of the Roadcheck program.

According to the National Safety Council, this year's program inspected 72,782 trucks in three days! CVSA reports that 57,013 of these inspections were NAS Level 1 Inspections. (Level 1 inspections are the most thorough or detailed of the North American Standard Inspections).

The results of these inspections are something that the trucking industry can really be proud of:

• 95.7% of drivers were in compliance with regulations (the highest score ever).
• 77.8% of vehicles were in compliance with the regulations (a 20.4% increase from 2008).
• The number of NAS Level 1 Inspections that were conducted increased by 8.9%

You can read the CVSA's press release on Roadcheck 2009 here.

In the June 2009 MSC Newsletter, we asked readers why they felt trucking fatalities had reached their lowest levels in history. The majority (62%) felt that the reduction was mostly due to fewer miles driven in a slow economy. Maybe we were wrong?

Regardless, CONGRATULATIONS are due to the North American trucking industry, and THANKS to the men and women in Law Enforcement who made the Roadcheck happen!

Technology and Distracted Driving

June 28th is the last day of the National Safety Council's National Safety Month. Their 2009 campaign has addressed Teen Driving, Fall Protection, Overexertion, and Distracted Driving. Because of MSC's focus on highway traffic safety, I thought this final week of the campaign warranted an additional post.

Distraction is often defined as when a driver focuses his or her attention on something other than the driving task. When this happens, perceiving the nature of a potential roadway hazard and responding to it takes longer.

"New" technologies (cell phones, wireless e-mail, and so on) have received quite a bit of unfavorable attention as potential distractions. However, the real problem is that drivers misuse the technology: they send text messages while driving and have cell phone conversations that are intense enough to create a high mental workload. If we are honest, a) I think we all know better, but b) we all do it anyway, at least occasionally.

Since we can't put the technology-genie back in the bottle (and we wouldn't want to even if we could), and because we generally do a poor job of changing people's driving behaviors, this is an area where we will have to rely heavily on other technologies to assist educators and enforcers in keeping roadways safer.

One great example of engineering technology coming to the rescue is a new product called Zoomsafer. MSC doesn't have any interest in this company, we don't receive any kickback from them, and we haven't studied it ourselves (or seen other peer-reviewed studies of it). However, these folks definitely have the right idea: use technology to assist the user and make his or her experience better and safer.

Zoomsafer may or may not work--I've signed up to be a beta customer so I can find out for myself. And the product is still in its infancy (it's still signing on beta customers). But this is absolutely on the right track: making people's lives better and safer with technology, and then finding an effective way to bring that technology to market.

Distracted Driving: The Final Week of National Safety Month

The final week of National Safety Month focuses on Distracted Driving.

With the increasing number of available in-vehicle technologies, drivers and companies are facing many new challenges. Cell phones, in-vehicle e-mail, and in-cab messaging or routing systems can create large efficiency gains for companies. They can also help drivers stay in touch with friends, relatives, clients, and co-workers while away from home. But the price of these efficiency and quality-of-life improvements can be huge if the the technologies divert attention from the driving task.

As seen in the photo above, there can be plenty of potential hazards on the highway. Technology isn't going away, and it isn't going to become less commonly used; as drivers, managers, and trainers, we will have to find ways to integrate technologies into a safe driving experience. This will mean well thought out and properly enforced policies and driver training that specifically addresses the issue of in-vehicle technology.

Another critical aspect of safely integrating technology is research in the fields of engineering and human performance. Research in these fields is ongoing at many of the top universities in the US, UK, Australia, and throughout Europe.

The NSC offers four tips for mitigating driver distraction:

* If you need to use your cell phone while driving, pull over and put the car in Park.

* Hands-free mode does not make a cell phone safer.

* Avoid driving when fatigued.

* Crash rates for teenage drivers who transport teenage passengers increase with every additional passenger. Limit who rides with your teen!

The NSC sums it up like this: "When driving, keep you mind on the road and your hands on the wheel."

Overexertion

Week three of National Safety Month focuses on preventing injuries due to overexertion. According to the NSC, back injuries due to overexertion are the nation’s leading safety problem in the workplace. However, as accident investigators in the Deep South, we face other exertion-related hazards – including extreme heat during summer inspections.

As employers, it is our responsibility to make sure that employees are provided with proper training and with 100% of the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) necessary for completing assignments in a safe way. Employers must also ensure that their organization is “friendly” to employees reporting safety concerns such as acute or chronic overexertion.

View the NSC's tips on avoiding overexertion in the home.

View the NSC's tips on avoiding overexertion in the workplace.

Fall Prevention

During this week of National Safety Month, the National Safety Council (NSC) focuses on Fall Prevention. According to OSHA, the majority of fatal falls in work-related incidents were from ladders and roofs. According to the US Department of Labor, falls account for 8% of all occupational fatalities from trauma.

Fall protection, as well as identifying and eliminating fall hazards, are key components in limiting the number of workers harmed or killed in fall incidents.

Learn more about fall hazards and possible solutions.

Learn more about OSHA’s Fall Protection Standards.

Teen Driving Safety

This week, the National Safety Council's Safety Month Awareness Campaign focuses on teen driving. Here are some facts from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Safety Council (NSC).

• 15-24-year-olds comprise only 14% of the US population, but they account for approximately 30% of motor vehicle accident costs.
• Teens account for approximately 10% of the US population, but they account for 12% of those fatally injured in car crashes.
• 4,544 teens died in car crashes in 2005. Over 400,000 were injured badly enough to visit a hospital emergency room.
• Each day TEN 15-20-year-olds are killed in car crashes.

The CDC is an excellent resource for parents, driving trainers, law enforcement officers, and public officials. Visit the CDC's teen driver page.

The NSC provides training materials and other information to assist responsible parties (parents, driving trainers, administrators, employers, and so on) with issues on teen driving. Visit the NSC's teen driver page.

Download the NSC's Family Guide to Teen Driving.

Learn about Graduated Driver's Licenses at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's Q&A page.

Here are some ways you can help:

• Support Graduated Driver Licensing and the politicians who support or advocate it.
• Be an involved parent. Several studies have shown that parental involvement has a bigger effect on teen driving safety than expensive training programs.
• Set a good example on the road. Young people tend to repeat behaviors they see in adults.
  

June is National Safety Month, an event sponsored by the National Safety Council to raise awareness about specific safety issues and injury mechanisms. This year the Safety Council and its members will work to provide information and educational material related to a separate issue for each of the four weeks:

1. June 1 - 7 Teen Driving
2. June 8 - 14 Fall Protection
3. June 15 - 21 Overexertion
4. June 22 - 30 Distracted Driving

MSC is proud to have been a member of the NSC since our inception in 2006. All of us believe that along with the ability to analyze accidents comes the obligation to use that ability so that future mishaps, accidents, and injuries can be prevented.