Edge Foundation Blog

Continuing our series on safe teen driving (see teen driving risk and safe driving book review), we offer some high tech (and low tech) tools to help your teen become a safer driver.

Low Tech Resource to support safe teen driving

Have you driver complete the Safe Driving Pledge.  It’s a great way to open up discussion about what skills make for a safe driver and to clarify your expectations for your teen’s driving behavior.  Cost:  Free

High Tech Teen Driver Safety Hardware

DriverZed

DriverZed program from AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety is an interactive computer program that trains young drivers to identify and deal with both common and unusual traffic situations before they get on the road.  Cost $24.95.

We know one youth who tried it really liked it.  His family reports he did it once all the way through and made all sorts of mistakes.  Then he did it again and did it perfectly.  He was proud to have mastered it and talked about all the things he’d learned (and then had fun correcting his parents on their driving mistakes on one or two occasions!)

Drivecam

The Drivecam is a tool you install on the review mirror of your car.  It records a video of your teen while they are behind the wheel.  The Drivecam gives your teen a sense of accountability – even when you aren’t in the car with them.  And when a driving error serious enough to trigger the recording (a sharp change in speed or direction) happens, the data are there for later evaluation and learning.

This program isn’t cheap.  But it’s been proven to be so effective that customers of American Family insurance can get the service for free at www.teensafedriver.com.  Cost: $899 for first year, $30/month after that.  See website for complete package details.

GPS Tracker

You may also want to consider a GPS Tracker that tells you where the car is at any given time.  http://www.rmtracking.com/teentracking.html

CarChip

A CarChip a small unit that plugs into your car’s on-board diagnostics and reads and stores driving and engine performance (available at many locations.  You can read a review this product in the Washington Post.

What have you done to help your teen become a safer driver?  We’d love to hear from you.

The statistics on ADHD teens and driving are scary. How do allow our teens to drive, but make it safer for our kids behind the wheel?

AD/HD & Driving – A Guild for parents of Teens with AD/HD, by J. Marlene Snyder  is the first and only book on ADHD, teens, and driving.  It is a must-read for all families who have or are contemplating having a teen with ADHD as a driver in the household.  (Note:  The book is out of print, but you can still find plenty of new and used copies on Amazon.com and other ADHD book selling sites.)

ADHD teens are neurologically more prone to speeding, and accidents.  And it’s critical that parents set clear expectations for ADHD teens when they get behind the wheel.

Chapter titles include:

When you have finished reading the book you will be armed with strategies to use to encourage safe driving behaviors in your teen — observation tools, topics to that require extra emphasis, work sheets and sample contracts.

An ADHD Coach can help your teen be a safer driver

Teaching your ADHD teen these new skills can be challenging.  We interviewed Marlene Snyder about the role of a coach in helping your ADHD teen be a safe driver.  Watch it here.  Next time we’ll outline some other tools that are on the market that can help you be sure your teen is driving safely – even when you aren’t in the car.

What have you done to keep your ADHD teen driver safe?  Here are a few ideas for your teen driver to consider.  Please leave us a comment and share what’s worked for you.

Did you know that you’re not fully grown up until you’re 25?

That’s right!  Your brain keeps growing well past the time you reach your full height.  Studies by the National Institute of Health and UCLA show that the risk assessment area of the brain isn’t fully developed until age 25.

Teen drivers at risk

So it shouldn’t be a surprise then, teen drivers are at risk when driving.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, teens are only 7% of licensed drivers, yet they account for 14% of fatal collisions.  In 2003, 3,657 teen drivers were killed, and an additional 308,000 were injured in crashes (Source:  AAA Foundation of Traffic Safety).  Put another way,  that means a 16 year old is twice as likely to have an accident as someone in their 80s!

The property damage costs of teen driver accidents is staggering – over $31 billion each year.

ADHD teens – an even greater driving risk

A few sobering facts about ADHD teens and driving. When compared to other teens…

1. ADHD teen drivers are seven times as likely to have been in 2 or more accidents.
2. ADHD teen drivers are two times as likely to have a speeding ticket.
3. ADHD teen drivers are five times as likely to have a traffic citation.
4. ADHD teen drivers are four times as likely to have been in an injury accident.
5. ADHD teen drivers are four times as likely to have been at fault for the accident they were in.

Families of ADHD teen drivers have a higher risk of:

1. Serious injury or death of their child,
2. Property damage,
3. Higher health care costs,
4. More involvement with legal and liability issues, and
5. Higher motor vehicle insurance rates.

Do we keep ADHD teens from driving?

Of course not! Driving is an important rite of passage in this country. It gives freedom and responsibility to our young adults and helps families manage complicated schedules.  BUT…

There are things you can do to keep yourself (or your teen) safe in the early years of becoming a skilled driver.  Next time we’ll show you how.

Have questions about ADHD teens and driving?  Ask them here, and we’ll do our best to answer them in a future post.

If you have ADHD, read this CNN article about the increased risks of driving with ADHD:

Teen Drivers with ADD a Problem on the Road .

 Take these three steps to make you a safer driver:

1. Turn OFF your cell phone.  If it’s off you won’t be tempted to answer it or text while at a light.
2. Drive alone.  Your friends are fun, but they are distracting.
3. Don’t play with the music.  Turn on your station before you turn on the car.  Fidling with radio and climate controls takes your focus away from the road.

What do you do to keep your focus while on the road?  Leave a comment and enter to win our September ADHD Awareness Contest.