AA Driving Academy

A federal safety official says a 19-year-old pickup truck driver involved in a deadly highway pileup in Missouri last year sent or received 11 texts in the 11 minutes immediately before the accident.

National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Deborah Hersman said this week it’s clear the pickup driver was manually, cognitively and visually distracted.

In connection with the findings, the NTSB recommended on Tuesday that states ban all driver use of cell phones and other hand held electronics, except in times of emergency. The ban should apply to both hand held and hands-free electronics, the Board said.

Investigators said the young driver sent six texts and received five texts just before his pickup crashed into the back of a tractor truck, beginning a chain collision. The pickup was rear-ended by a school bus, which in turn was rammed by a second school bus.

The pickup driver and a 15-year-old student on one of the school buses were killed. Thirty-eight other people were injured in the Aug. 5, 2010, accident near Gray Summit, Mo.
Texting while driving has been identified as a scourge on U.S. roads by the Department of Transportation and several states, which have enacted anti-texting laws.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is currently evaluating proposed policy that could limit the communications technology that is allowed in passenger cars.

In the last few years the Feds have investigated a commuter rail accident that killed 25 people in California in which the train engineer was texting; a fatal marine accident in Philadelphia in which a tugboat pilot was talking on his cellphone and using a laptop; and a Northwest Airlines flight that flew more than 100 miles past its destination because both pilots were working on their laptops.

This is trending very hot and it’s a growing concern for the NTSB,” Hersman told The Associated Press.

The board has previously recommended bans on texting and cell phone use by commercial truck and bus drivers and beginning drivers, but it had previously stopped short of calling for a ban on the use of the devices by adults behind the wheel of passenger cars until Tuesday, when it recommended the ban be extended to all drivers.

About two out of 10 American drivers overall – and half of drivers between 21 and 24 – say they’ve thumbed messages or emailed from the driver’s seat, according to a survey of more than 6,000 drivers by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

For all the publicity about anti-texting laws, deaths attributed to distracted driving, the public remains ambivalent about limitations on in-car cell-phone and smart-phone use and harsh punishments when such behavior is tied to vehicular accidents.

Most U.S. motorists recently surveyed acknowledged few situations in which they would not use a cell phone or text while behind the wheel. Still, they support measures to curb both practices, data released early this month by the Department of Transportation (DOT) showed.

The findings were part of a study of driver behavior launched to help regulators understand “why some people continue to make bad decisions” about driving while distracted, officials said.

“What’s clear from all of the information we have is that driver distraction continues to be a major problem,” said David Strickland, the top U.S. auto safety regulator as head of NHTSA.

The survey results were released as Strickland’s agency finalized traffic fatality figures showing 32,855 people were killed on U.S. roads in 2010, about 1,000 fewer than the 33,808 deaths in 2009.

Virginia’s driving restrictions are not meant to penalize teen drivers, but to help them stay safe while they gain valuable driving experience. Studies have found that these restrictions work to reduce the number of car crashes among young drivers.

Curfew Restrictions

Virginia’s curfew laws prohibit a driver under age 18 who holds a learner’s permit or driver’s license from driving midnight to 4 A.M. If you hold a driver’s license you may drive during these hours:
• in case of an emergency;
• when traveling to and from work or a school-sponsored event;
•when accompanied by a parent or other adult acting in place of a parent;
•when responding to an emergency call as a volunteer firefighter or rescue squad personnel.

Passenger Restrictions
If you are under age 18, you may carry only one passenger under age 18 during the first year that you hold your driver’s license. After you have held your license for one year, you may carry only three passengers under age 18 until you reach age 18. Learner’s permit holders may not carry more than one passenger under age 18. Passenger restrictions do not apply to family members.
Violations of either the curfew or passenger restrictions can result in the suspension of your driver’s license.

You will receive a notice that tells you when to appear in court for a licensing ceremony where you will receive your permanent driver’s license. You must appear before the judge with a parent or legal guardian to receive your license.

If you are 19 years of age and older and you have never held a license issued by any state, U.S. territory or foreign country, you must hold a learner’s permit for 30 days or more or show completion of a state-approved driver education program. You may take your driver education certificate to any DMV customer service center and take the road skills test.

If you fail the road skills test three times at a CSC, you must successfully complete the behind the wheel portion of an approved Virginia Driver Training School program and present the Driver Education Training Certificate with a completion date that is after the date of the third test failure to be eligible for re-examination at a customer service center. Re-examination requirements for home-schooled students can be found in Home-Schooled Re-Examination Requirements Information Sheet (HS 4).

Cellular Telephone/Wireless Telecommunications Device Restrictions
Virginia’s cellular telephone law restricts a driver under age 18 who holds a learner’s permit or driver’s license from using any cellular telephone or any other wireless telecommunications device, regardless of whether such device is or is not hand-held. If you are under age 18, you can only use a cell phone or any other telecommunications device:
•for a driver emergency;
•when the vehicle is lawfully parked or stopped.

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Annual traffic deaths in the U.S. have fallen to their lowest level in six decades, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. 

Released on Thursday, the figures from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that highway deaths fell to 32,885 in 2010. That’s the lowest figure since 1949 and represents a 2.9 percent drop from 2009 — despite the fact that Americans drove almost 46 billion more miles during the year. Americans collectively drove about 3 trillion miles in 2010.

“While we have more work to do to continue to protect American motorists, these numbers show we’re making historic progress when it comes to improving safety on our nation’s roadways,” said DOT Secretary Ray LaHood in a statement.

Industry representatives cited several contributing factors for the drop, such as graduated license programs for young drivers, hands-free cell phone laws and stiffer drunk driving penalties. 

“Safer vehicles, safer roads and safer drivers as a result of traffic-safety policies that have been implemented over the last few years are certainly contributors,” said Jake Nelson, director of traffic safety advocacy and research at AAA. “It’s the combination of all these factors that have given us the results we’re seeing today.”

Additional data provided by DOT supports that idea:

• Deaths in crashes involving drunk drivers dropped 4.9 percent in 2010, resulting in 10,228 fatalities compared to 10,759 in 2009.
• Fatalities declined in most categories in 2010, including for occupants of passenger cars and light trucks. (Fatalities rose among pedestrians, motorcycle riders and large truck occupants.)  
• Deaths among young drivers (ages 16–20) have dropped 39 percent over the last five years, compared to a 23 percent drop in the general population.

The latest figures also include a new measure of fatalities caused by distracted driving, essentially a refinement of existing data that focuses more directly on situations where dialing a phone, sending a text or the activities of another person or event are likely to lead to a crash. According to DOT, 3,092 fatalities were the result of such “distraction-affected crashes.”

“Distracted driving has become a much bigger issue in the last few years,” said Nelson. “The measure they’ll now report will be a better indicator of the true impact distractions have on traffic crashes.”

That, Nelson said, should also help direct road-safety efforts going forward: “The challenge is to identify the areas where we’re making the greatest gains and leveraging those to see the numbers drop even further.”

Lose License for a Year, Pay $500 Fine or 50 Hours

RICHMOND – Teens who drink alcohol and drive will face harsher penalties beginning July 1 including loss of their driver’s license for a year and either a $500 minimum fine or 50 hours of community service. Currently, the punishment is loss of license for six months and a fine of no more than $500.

“This new law is right in line with Virginia’s ‘zero tolerance’ stance against underage drinking and driving,” said DMV Commissioner Richard D. Holcomb, the Governor’s Highway Safety Representative. Zero tolerance means the legal limit for teens is a .02 percent blood alcohol concentration (BAC), which is the normal alcohol content of the average person. Even a small amount of alcohol can result in a conviction.

“Unfortunately, teens are one of the highest risk populations on our roadways,” Holcomb said. “Despite meaningful efforts to curb underage drinking and driving, it still remains a significant problem.” In 2010, 1,285 drivers under the legal drinking age of 21 were convicted of drunk driving in Virginia; most were 18 to 20 years old.

The Virginia General Assembly approved several other traffic-related laws that will take effect July 1, 2011.

Motorcycles and red signals
One allows motorcycles, mopeds and bicycles, in certain situations, to go through red traffic signals. They may treat a red light as a stop sign if their bike fails to trigger the traffic light and they have waited two full cycles of the light or two minutes, whichever is shorter.

School bus violations
Violators of school bus traffic laws may be recorded by video cameras mounted inside school buses since a new law will allow localities to pass ordinances permitting the devices. The cameras may record license plates, and the date and time of any violations. Fines for these violations will be payable to the local school division. One example of a school bus traffic law is the requirement for vehicles to stop when approaching school buses that are stopped to load or unload passengers, and to remain stopped until the bus moves again.

Flash emergency lights at intersections
Another new law taking effect July 1 requires emergency vehicles, such as ambulances or police cruisers, to flash their emergency lights or sound a siren before proceeding through a red traffic signal or stop sign. Or, the driver of an emergency vehicle must come to a complete stop before proceeding through a red light if required for the safety of people and property.

Adding a teenage driver to your car insurance policy will raise your rates. But you can control how much they’ll climb.

Having teens drive a Camry rather than a Corvette, encouraging them to bring home report cards with straight A’s, and urging them to keep their driving records clean can all have a major impact on rates.

“Putting your teen in a big, boring vehicle is going to be a lot easier on the wallet than giving them the zippy small car they may want,” says Russ Rader, spokesperson for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

There is a reason teenagers cost more to insure.

New drivers are among the most dangerous on the road, racking up tickets and accidents at rates several times the rate of the average driver. (See “What a teenager does to your insurance rates.”)

A teenager does not have to drive. Bicycles and bus passes are cheaper, if you live in a place where that’s feasible.

But if it’s not, here is what every parent needs to know about the cheapest ways to insure a teenager.

Yes, you have to insure your teen driver

Virtually every insurer will require that all licensed family members in a household be included on your policy, whether they drive your cars or not. You should let the insurer know when the child gets his learners permit, but typically the teen isn’t listed (or your policy charged) until he or she is licensed.

If you are divorced and have only part-time custody of your child, you’ll have to consult your insurance company. Each company has its own rules. The best case is that the parent with primary custody adds the new driver; the worst case is that both parents do.

The only way to avoid paying the premium for a teenage driver on your own car is a named exclusion. Through an endorsement to your policy, you and your insurer agree that the driver is not covered. Any claim caused by that driver isn’t covered, either.

Your teen could insure his or her own car, but state laws governing teen ownership of cars differ widely. In general, a minor cannot own property or sign contracts, such as an insurance agreement, without a parent’s consent and signature.

It is almost always cheaper to add teenagers to an existing policy than to exclude them, and then buy an additional car and insure that, says CarInsurance.com consumer analyst Penny Gusner.

Not-so-hot wheels

If your household has several cars, it can help to have your new driver assigned to a specific one — the one that’s cheapest to insure.

If your child will have a car of his or her own, one place to start when looking for a car is the IIHS’s website, which lists insurance losses by make and model for vehicles built prior to 2010. Those vehicles with lower auto insurance losses will typically have lower auto insurance rates, while providing more protection if your teen is in a crash, Rader says.

The site also has a listing of the IIHS’s top safety picks for 2011 and older model years.

June Walbert, a Certified Financial Planner for USAA, says a vehicle with a “bigger, faster engine costs more money to insure and more money to repair.”

And just having a car with a powerful engine can be a temptation, Walbert says. “If you have that kind of power available, perhaps you’ll use it.” Instead, she recommends four-door sedans and crossover vehicles.

Don’t overlook car insurance discounts

If your teen can’t get by without wheels, check with your insurer to see what types of discounts might be available.

A study done for Nationwide in 2010 of almost 1,500 parents of teens between the ages of 15 and 19 found auto insurance costs soared an average of $800 a year just by adding a teenager to their policy.

Many auto insurers offer good-student discounts to teens who maintain at least a “B” average. At Nationwide, that discount reaches 25%, says spokesperson Elizabeth Stelzer.

Like many other companies, Nationwide also offers discounts if your teen completes a driver’s education course, Stelzer says. And bundling multiple insurance policies, like auto, homeowners and life insurance, will also cut costs.

And as with adults, the cleaner the driving record, the lower the insurance costs.

If your teen is old enough to head off to college, lives more than 100 miles from home and doesn’t have a car, you’re also likely to get a break on your auto insurance, Walbert says. That’s because the teen isn’t a regular operator of the vehicle, but still can drive it when he or she comes home on break.

Asserting your parental influence

Several insurance companies offer monitoring devices that keep an eye on your teen’s driving behavior. That may mean sending you a notification if your teen does something he or she is not supposed to do; providing the teen with verbal feedback; or transmitting video of the driving using a two-way camera.

Depending on the system installed, it might monitor certain specified behaviors, like speeding, seat belt usage, hard braking and cornering, arrival and departure times, or moving the car when it isn’t supposed to be moved.

One deterrent to widespread usage of such devices may be their cost, as well as the monthly monitoring fee, Rader says.

With the Teensurance program offered by Safeco, auto insurance discounts of up to 15% are offered if the Safety Beacon GPS-based system is used.

“We want to create a tool that helps parents and teens having a discussion about what safe practices are,” says Shawn Anderson, product innovation architect at Liberty Mutual Insurance, which owns Safeco.

Another option is technology that blocks cell phone calls and text messages when a vehicle is in motion and is aimed at preventing distracted driving, Rader says.

And Ford has introduced MyKey on some vehicles, which can be programmed to limit a vehicle’s top speed or the volume of audio devices, he says.

“A lot of technology exists and will become more widely available in the future,” Rader says.

The original article can be found at CarInsurance.com:
A parent’s guide to insuring a teen driver

Maneuvering around pedestrians can be difficult because their behavior is unpredictable, but knowing what to do in various situations can prevent a tragic incident.

In 2009, an estimated 5,300 pedestrian deaths and 120,000 medically consulted nonfatal pedestrian injuries occurred as a result of incidents involving motor vehicles, according to the National Safety Councils “Injury Facts.” Most pedestrian deaths and injuries occur when they improperly cross roadways or intersections, or when they dart or run into streets, council data shows. Pedestrian deaths and injuries also are caused by playing, working or standing in roadways, and walking in traffic.

NHTSA also warns that alcohol involvement either by the pedestrian or the driver has been a factor in traffic crashes that result in pedestrian fatalities.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration advises professional drivers to prevent crashes involving pedestrians by driving defensively and following these safety tips:

• Conduct maintenance checks of equipment that will aid you in situations involving pedestrians. Check mirrors, horn operation and devices that will indirectly aid vision.
• When maneuvering close to pedestrians, anticipate the unexpected. Pedestrians often misjudge the speed and closeness of a commercial motor vehicle and sometimes assume you will slow down for them.
• Do not assume pedestrians will give you the right-of-way until it is obvious they are waiting for you to pass.
• Be extra careful at night because pedestrians might incorrectly assume you can see them because they can easily see your headlights.
• Know that improper trailer tracking in turns may cause your trailer to run onto the sidewalk. Turn wide enough to avoid this and go very slowly.

Driving green means practicing safe driving habits and keeping your car in good shape. Doing this will help to reduce your fuel consumption – which translates to less money spent at the gas pump and more money in your pocket. Just as important – good driving and good maintenance will extend the life of your vehicle and increase its resale value.

Practice Good Driving Habits

Most safe driving habits are also green habits, as they save fuel.

• Stick to the speed limit. It’s safer and it uses less fuel. Fuel ecomony declines about 1% for every mile driven over 55 mph. According to the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, speed was a factor in almost one third of fatal crashes in 2008.
• Avoid quick starts and stops. Accelerate slowly and smoothly, and avoid hard braking. This helps to boost gas mileage and prevent unnecessary wear and tear on your brakes.
• Use cruise control when you are on the highway to maintain a steady speed.
• Use overdrive gearing whenever possible. Running in a higher gear decreases engine speed and saves gas and engine wear.
• Remove excess weight. Get rid of the junk in your trunk. Carrying around an extra 100 pounds reduces fuel economy by about 1 percent.
• Avoid packing items on the top of your car. This creates wind resistance and increases aerodynamic drag. According to the Federal Trade Commission, loading up your roof rack can cut fuel economy by 5 percent.
• Use air conditioning wisely. Consider your speed before deciding whether or not to turn on the air conditioning during the summer months. If you are driving at 40mph or less, rolling down your windows and opening your air vents will increase fuel economy. If you are driving at a speed above 40mph, it is more efficient to use your air conditioner. Driving with the windows open at higher speeds can increase drag and decrease fuel economy.
• Avoid unnecessary idling. Turn off the engine if you are stationary for more than 10 seconds. Instead of waiting in line at a drive-in window, turn off the engine and go in. You may actually save time that way.
• Consolidate your trips. Not only do you save fuel, you’ll cut down on the amount of time you spend behind the wheel.

 

Keep Your Car Well Maintained

Keeping your car well maintained saves gas, reduces emissions, and helps your car to last longer. It’s a win-win! Read about some maintenance tips below:

• Keep your tires properly inflated. This will help your tires last longer and perform better. Under inflated tires can make the steering sluggish and have the tires get hotter. Fuel economy goes down by about 1 percent for every 3 pounds below recommended pressure, and driving with a properly inflated tire reduces the chance of a blowout. Tires can lose about 1 pound of pressure in a month, so check the air pressure regularly and always before going on a long trip or carrying heavy loads. In addition, make sure to keep your wheels rotated and tires balanced.
• Change the oil regularly and use the recommended grade of motor oil. Changing the oil and oil filter regularly increases fuel economy and helps your car last longer. Your owner’s manual has guidelines for how often to change the oil and the correct grade.
• Keep your engine properly tuned. An engine that is not properly tuned wastes gas, emits more pollutants, and has a higher risk of breaking down.
• Check and replace the air filter regularly. Replacing a clogged air filter can increase gas mileage by 4 percent.