DOT 69-08
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Contact: Brian Turmail
Tel.: (202) 366-4570
Fewer People Injured in Highway Crashes Every Year, U.S. Secretary of
Transportation Mary E. Peters Announces
But cautions that too many teens still getting injured in crashes,
Announces new teen driving safety measures
SEVERNA PARK, Md. – The number of people injured in crashes on our nation’s
highways has declined every year since 1995, Transportation Secretary Mary E.
Peters announced today, noting that there were 4.8 percent fewer injuries in
2006 (2,575,000) than in 2005. The trend also extends to teenaged drivers, who
achieved a more than 6 percent decline from 2005 to 2006.
Still, the new data released today by the U.S. Department of Transportation
indicates that teen injuries make up more than 16 percent of overall
crash-related injuries, even though they represent only 8 percent of the driving
public, Peters noted after meeting with the Severna Park Senior High School
chapter of Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD).
“In the test of life, teenage drivers are failing at twice the rate as the rest
of us. That’s a safety grade none of us is willing to accept,” Peters said.
“Just as you hit the books to turn things around in class, we’re going to
redouble our efforts to make our roads safer and our teenagers healthier.”
To help improve teen road safety, Peters announced a nationwide competition to
develop the next generation of advertising and educational materials with a
fresh focus to encourage teenagers to drive safely. The winning campaign will
receive $5,000 and broad distribution to where it can do the most good with the
help of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
She also announced that the Department of Transportation will award $300,000
each to two states to promote seat belt use in their local communities through
creative and highly visible law enforcement efforts. And she said two states
would each be awarded $100,000 to help combat drunk driving through the use of
promising technologies for impaired driving offenders that would disable a
vehicle if the driver is legally impaired.
“You are not invincible,” Peters said to a group of 50 juniors and seniors at
Severna Park Senior High School. “Take your driving seriously. Put down your
cell phone and stop text messaging. You can get back to your friends once you’ve
turned off the ignition, but you can never get your life back.”
For more information about the injury numbers, the safe driving competition, and
the seat belt and technology grants, please visit
www.nhtsa.gov.
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