Page 7 - AAA Northway – AAA Now! – January/February 2017

member services
Speeding One of Top Deadly Mistakes Made by Teen Drivers
DefenSive Driving
Reduces InsuRance PRemIums & PoInts
A New York State DMV approved 6-hour Point/Insurance Reduction Classroom Course.
RECEIVE:
A 10% insurance discount
REDUCE:
By up to four points from your current driving record
REFRESH:
Your driving skills
JANUARY
14 Sat 9am-4pm 24 & 25 T/W 6-9pm
FEbRUARY
11 Sat 9am-4pm 21 & 22 T/W 6-9pm 25 Sat 9am-4pm
MARCH
18 Sat 9am-4pm 21 & 22 T/W 6-9pm 28 & 29 T/W 6-9pm
APRIL
8 Sat 9am-4pm 11 & 12 T/W 6-9pm
Queensbury Queensbury
Queensbury Schenectady Queensbury
Queensbury Schenectady Queensbury
Queensbury Schenectady
To ATTeND A ClASS PleASe CAll: 1-888-761-6058
Can’t make it to a classroom course?
The course is available ONLINE, too! Visit AAA.com/Safety to register.
Cost for the classroom course is $34 for members and $45 for nonmembers; visit AAA.com for online course price. Classroom courses are filled on a first-come, first- served basis for paid applicants. Registration is not valid until payment has been made. You must bring your New York State driver’s license and a pen to class. Special rates for groups of 15 to 30. THERE ARE NO REFUNDS FOR ANY STUDENT CANCELLATION OF A DIP CLASS. All cancellations will be rescheduled on a space-available basis up to six months from original class date.
Over the past five years, teen drivers were involved in nearly 14,000 fatal crashes and more than 4,200 of those crashes involved speeding. According to a new AAA survey of driving instructors, speeding is one of the top three mistakes teens make when learning to drive. With 65 percent of those instructors also reporting that parents today are worse at preparing their teens to drive compared to a decade ago, AAA cautions parents that their involvement is key to preventing deadly mistakes behind the wheel.
“Nearly two-thirds of people injured or killed in a crash involving a teen driver are people other than the teen,” said Bill Van Tassel, AAA’s manager of Driver Training Operations. “Involved parents really can help save lives, so it’s important for parents to coach their teens to slow down, as well as to avoid other common mistakes.”
In the survey, Skills of Novice Teen Drivers, 142 driving instructors revealed the top three mistakes teens make when learning to drive:
• Poor Visual Scanning: Driving with tunnel vision
and not properly scanning the road for risks or hazards.
• Speeding: Traveling over posted speed limits or too
fast for road conditions.
• Distraction: Interacting with a cell phone, talking
with passengers or looking at other objects in the vehicle.
“We all know that the combination of inexperience and risk taking can be a deadly one,”said Jennifer Ryan, director of State Relations for AAA.
“Parents need to understand the common mistakes teens are making and take the time to help their teens learn how to stay safer on the road when they are learning to drive.”
In addition to revealing that
parents today are worse at preparing their teens to drive than they were 10 years ago, driving instructors report that parents often set a bad example through their own behaviors. A recent survey from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that drivers aged 35-55 commonly report dangerous behaviors when behind the wheel.
• 77 percent of drivers aged 35-55 reported talking on a cell phone while driving, compared to 68 percent
of teen drivers.
• A similar proportion of teens and drivers aged 35-55
reported driving 15 mph over the speed limit on a freeway (45 percent and 46 percent, respectively).
“Parents play a major role in keeping our roads safe,” continued Ryan. “Most teens are learning important driving skills from watching their parents and they are picking up bad behaviors along with the good ones. So it’s up to today’s parents to set a good example. It may end up saving their children’s lives.”
Past research shows that teens with parents who impose stricter driving limits reported fewer crashes and traffic violations. AAA recommends parents stay actively involved in coaching their teens through the learning-to-drive process by:
• Having conversations early and regularly about the dangers of speeding and distraction.
• Taking the time to practice driving with their teens in varying conditions.
• Adopting and enforcing a parent-teen driving agreement that sets family rules for the road.
• Leading by example and minimizing distractions and speeding when they are driving.
AAA also recommends that teens preparing for the responsibility of driving should enroll in a driver education program that teaches how to avoid driver distraction and other safety skills. Resources to help parents choose a class and coach their teen through the learning-to drive process can be found on AAA’s award-winning website TeenDriving.AAA.com.
FREE
CAR SEAT CHECKS
AAA’s Certified
Child Passenger Safety Technicians will give you helpful tips on proper car seat selection and installation, which are important in keeping kids safe while traveling in vehicles.
Appointment required Call 1-888-761-6058
january/february 2017
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