New Chrysler Program Helps Parents Safely Ease Their Teens Into Driving

Survey Shows Most Parents Cite Driving Safety as a Top Concern, Know Their Teens Engage in High-Risk Driving Behaviors

WASHINGTON, March 6 -- Six out of ten parents say driving safety is a top concern when it comes to their teens -- far outranking fears such as pregnancy, suicide, and drug and alcohol abuse(1) according to a new survey commissioned by the Chrysler Group. Overwhelmingly, parents say they know their teen drivers engage in unsafe driving behavior. To help parents protect new teen drivers, Chrysler Group and leading national safety organizations are developing a research-based teen driving safety initiative called Road Ready Teens.

"The research behind the Road Ready Teens guidelines has been shown to reduce crash risk by nearly one-third," said Dr. Dieter Zetsche, President and CEO, Chrysler Group. "Nine out of ten parents say they would put a home-based teen driving safety program into practice. Road Ready Teens will make parents aware of the nature of the risks and give them the knowledge and tools to better protect their families."

Joining Chrysler Group in Road Ready Teens are the National Safety Council (NSC) and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is providing technical support and lending its expertise for research and material development. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) also is providing technical support. "We are extremely pleased to have the support of these organizations with recognized expertise in the field," added Dr. Zetsche.

The cornerstone of Road Ready Teens is research-based guidelines recommended by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Data from states such as North Carolina, Michigan and Kentucky show that after implementing many of the guidelines embodied in Road Ready Teens, teen crash rates for 16- year-old drivers can be reduced by nearly one-third, thereby protecting kids from injuries, saving lives, and holding down insurance costs.

As a key component of Road Ready Teens, Chrysler Group is sponsoring MADD's new multi-media show on underage drinking prevention and driving safety that will visit more than 2,000 high schools and reach more than two million teenagers in the first year alone. Road Ready Teens also will include national distribution of a comprehensive Parent's Guide to Road Ready Teens. MADD will disseminate the Parent's Guide through its 600 local affiliates nationwide as well as through MADD's partnerships with schools and various traffic safety groups. The Parent's Guide also will be distributed through Chrysler, Jeep(R), and Dodge dealers.

"Drinking and driving is part of the concern parents have when it comes to driving safety," said Wendy J. Hamilton, President, MADD. "The facts back up their concern. On a typical weekend, an average of one teen dies each hour in a vehicle crash and 44 percent of these crashes involve alcohol. Road Ready Teens will help address this issue." Road Ready Teens also will include a Web-based video game called the Road Ready Teens Road Test that will challenge teens' driving skills and provide online competition with other teens via http://www.roadreadyteens.org/ . The game will be available later this year. In the first year alone, Road Ready Teens' direct outreach is expected to reach more than 1.5 million parents and teens.

The Chrysler Group survey found that more than two-thirds of parents know their inexperienced teenage driver drives with multiple teen passengers, and drives late at night. NHTSA data show that 63 percent of the teen deaths in 2001 happened with multiple teen passengers in the vehicle, and more than half of teen crashes occur at night, even though the vast majority of teen driving occurs during daylight hours. Also, the data show that teenagers ages 16 to 19 are four times more likely than older drivers to be involved in a crash and many of these crashes occur on weekends. Nearly 5,000 teenagers ages 16 to 19 are killed and another 300,000 are injured each year in traffic crashes(2) -- far eclipsing any other cause of death.

Many of the recommendations that underpin Road Ready Teens have been applied to graduated driver's licensing (GDL) laws enacted in most states. However, no state law includes the entire slate of guidelines. Last November, the NTSB issued a recommendation asking all states to enact strict GDL provisions.

Last month, the NSC issued the most authoritative review of graduated driving research ever done. "Many states have enacted graduated driver's licensing laws to help teens gain experience and maturity behind the wheel," said Chuck Hurley, Vice President, Transportation Safety Group, NSC. "By themselves, however, laws are not enough. To work, the laws need the involvement and support of parents. Road Ready Teens will help parents voluntarily adopt the elements of graduated driving in their families."

There are three basic levels in the Road Ready Teens recommendations: the Learner's Permit level, the New Driver level and the Full Driver level. During the Learner's Permit level, parents are encouraged to make sure a teen driver completes a certified driver's education course and an additional 30 to 50 hours of supervised driving over those required by a driver's education course before getting a license.

During the New Driver level, which begins after the Learner's Permit level and lasts at least six months but is encouraged to last until the new driver is 18, it is recommended that parents do the following: limit unsupervised driving after 9 or 10 p.m. (exempt activities such as traveling to and from work) and limit the number of teenage passengers a teen can drive with to no more than one. Parents also should implement a zero tolerance policy for alcohol and drug use and insist that teens and their passengers always wear seat belts.

If any of the Road Ready Teens guidelines are broken, Road Ready Teens recommends that parents extend the New Driver level before teens get unrestricted driving privileges in the Full Driver level.

Public Opinion Strategies of Alexandria, Va., conducted the research commissioned by Chrysler Group. The study included a national survey of 400 parents of teenagers and direct discussions with parents and teens.

Chrysler Group also will work with the NSC to develop a public service campaign targeting parents and teens and support the NSC's development of a comprehensive family guide on graduated driving guidelines.

  (1) Public Opinion Strategies for Chrysler Group, (February 2003).  Survey
      of 400 parents of teenagers 15 to 18.  Margin of error:  +/- 4.9%.
      Question:  "Please tell me the health and safety risk facing your
      teenager/teenagers that concerns or worries you the most?"  Driving
      safety and related driving issues (including driving safety (39%), car
      crashes (25%), drinking and driving (11%), and speeding (6%)) are a
      top concern with 59 percent of parents.  Other health and safety risks
      that are top of mind for parents are: drug abuse (31%), alcohol abuse
      (17%), pregnancy or STDs (13%), violent crime (11%), diseases like
      cancer or AIDS (7%), peer pressure (6%), war (4%) and suicide (3%).
      Totals do not add up to 100 since more than two responses were
      accepted.

  (2) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), National Highway Traffic
      Safety Administration