The California Highway Patrol and a teen drivers group are using a federal grant to crack down on distracted teen drivers.
CHP officials in Sacramento issued a news release Monday announcing the CHP and the group, Impact Teen Drivers, are using a grant-funded education program to make a positive impact on highway safety throughout California.
“Working with ITD, our goal is to change the behaviors of these inexperienced drivers by making them aware of the dangers and consequences of reckless and distracted driving,” CHP Commissioner Warren Stanley was quoted as saying in the news release.
Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Traffic collisions, according to the CHP, are the leading cause of death among teenagers, which is why the CHP is continuing its partnership with Impact Teen Drivers.
The traffic safety partners share the common goal of reducing the number of traffic collisions and teen traffic-related deaths in California.
Young drivers are three times more likely than adults to be involved in a traffic collision due to distraction.
The Teen Distracted Drivers Education and Enforcement IX grant campaign will focus on classroom education, community events and active enforcement to change the mindset of teens and their parents, and to decrease the number of teen distracted driving traffic collisions and fatalities.
This year-long, statewide campaign began Oct. 1, and continues through Sept. 30, 2020.
“We lose 11 teens every day to preventable car crashes in the United States. In California alone, we lose the equivalent of eight school buses each year to this deadly epidemic,” Dr. Kelly Browning, executive director of ITD, said in the news release.
“It is time we stop thinking these are just sad accidents and, instead, empower ourselves and our newest drivers with the knowledge, attitude and skills needed to make our roads safer for all Californians. It will take all of us to stop the No. 1 killer of teens,” he was quoted as saying.
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