Georgia Conference on Teen Driver Safety Part of Efforts to Stop the Tragic Loss of Young Lives

At the end of February, the Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety held its biennial Youth and Young Adult Leadership Conference in Peachtree City. The conference “is designed to bring student advocates of highway safety together to focus on new ways to communicate life-saving ideas to their peers” and increase safety for teen drivers.

It is not hard to understand why such a conference and all other efforts to improve teen driver safety are so important. Check out these chilling statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teens.

In 2013, 2,163 teens in the U.S. ages 16–19 were killed in motor vehicle crashes
In that same year, 243,243 teens were treated in emergency departments for injuries suffered in motor vehicle crashes.
Six teens ages 16–19 died every day from motor vehicle injuries.
This is an unacceptable loss of young lives. What makes it worse is that many if not most of the injuries and deaths involving teen drivers are preventable. According to the CDC, the following are the biggest causes of teen driving accidents:

• Driver inexperience
• Driving with teen passengers
• Nighttime driving
• Not using seat belts
• Distracted driving
• Drowsy driving
• Reckless driving
• Impaired driving

As part of the state’s effort to reduce these behaviors and the tragedies that result, Georgia has joined the growing number of states that have a graduated driver’s license program for teens between 16 and 18 years-old. As you can read about in detail here, Georgia’s program places strict limits on when teens can drive and who they can drive with, among other requirements.

But the law can only do so much. As the CDC notes, parents are the key to instilling good driving behaviors in their teens. The CDC has wonderful and extensive advice for parents as to how they can reduce the likelihood that their teens will engage in the behaviors that lead to most teen driving accidents.

As a personal injury lawyer, I have seen the awful consequences of car accidents involving teen drivers. As a father, I want to do everything in my power to prevent such tragedies in the future. All efforts to reduce the senseless injuries and deaths to our young people are to be encouraged and applauded.

Parian Law Firm: Metro Atlanta Car Accident Attorney

At Parian Law Firm in metro Atlanta, Georgia, we represent injury victims exclusively and are committed to getting justice and compensation for our clients. If you have been injured in a car accident, please call The Parian Law Firm at (770) 727-5550 or chat live online with a member of our staff today. We can discuss your situation, evaluate your potential claim, and advise you of your options.