YOU ARE PART OF THE SYSTEM The key to becoming a safe and responsible driver is to learn about the risks of driving and how to manage them.

YOU ARE PART OF THE SYSTEM

The key to becoming a safe and responsible driver is to learn about the risks of driving and how to manage them.

The Highway Transportation System (HTS)

The purpose of the HTS is to move people and cargo from one place to another in a safe and efficient manner.

Of all transportation systems, the HTS is the most complex.

The highway transportation system has three parts:

1. roadway users2. vehicles3. roadways

Roadway Users

When high-risk roadway users are on the road, be alert to the risks involved and know how to reduce or control them.

Vehicles

In the United States, there are more than 240 million registered passenger vehicles—ranging from lightweight mopeds to tractor trailers weighing many tons.

Roadways

The HTS involves more than 4 million miles of paved roads.

Not all roadway conditions are the same. Examples include:

1. unlit roads2. unpaved road surfaces3. hazardous environmental

conditions

As you learn to drive, you will learn how to navigate the complex mix of people, vehicles, and roadways safely and responsibly.

Regulating the HTS

The federal government passed two laws to set standards that create guidelines for vehicle and highway safety programs.

1. The National Highway Safety Act2. The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety

Act

Federal, state, and local government agencies work together to regulate the HTS.

The National Highway Safety Act

Guidelines under this law that states must follow include vehicle registration, driver licensing, traffic courts, and highway construction and maintenance.

The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act

To keep cars safe, this law requires auto makers to install certain safety features into each car.

YOUR DRIVING TASK

In 2004, more people between the ages of 15 and 24 died as a result of vehicle crashes than from any other single cause.

What do you think is the primary cause of crash deaths among this age group?

The driving task includes mental, social, and physical skills.

Drivers can develop low-risk driving habits by

•using knowledge and visual skills•judging speed, time, and space•anticipating how your car will respond under

ordinary and emergency conditions

Mental Skills

Develop mental skills as a habit to protect yourself and your passengers:

•critical judgment•continuous monitoring of the roadway

Social Skills

A big part of your driving task will be applying social skills to stressful situations by remaining calm and patient to avoid conflicts.

Make an effort to work with other drivers so that you don’t lose focus and make driving mistakes.

Physical Skills

When you use the controls to accelerate, brake, and steer, you are using physical skills.

Coordinating the use of your eyes and hands is needed to effectively control your vehicle in a timely manner.

IPDE Process

The IPDE Process is an organized system for seeing, thinking, and responding during the driving task. IPDE is an acronym for:

•Identify important information in the current driving situation.

•Predict when and where possible points of conflict may develop.

•Decide when, where, and how to communicate, adjust speed, and/or change position to avoid conflict.

•Execute the correct action(s) to prevent conflict.

Understanding and using the Zone Control System will help you use the IPDE Process more effectively by managing space around your car.

IPDE Process + Zone Control = Low-Risk Driving

Low-risk driving means that you will constantly monitor other vehicles and roadway users around you, and actively avoid hazardous situations.

What clues do you see that will affect your decision about your speed?

Could you predict a possible conflict in this picture?

A tire is in the roadway. What decision would you make to safely avoid the tire?

Two hikers are in your path of travel.What actions should you take?

YOUR DRIVING RESPONSIBILITIES

Driving is a privilege given to an individual who meets certain requirements determined by state law. As with any privilege, driving has responsibilities.

As a licensed driver, you will have legal, financial, and environmental responsibilities.

Furthermore, you will be expected to assume responsibility for yourself as well as for others while you are behind the wheel.

Legal Responsibilities

Laws

Your primary responsibility as a driver is to obey all traffic laws. As a law-abiding driver, you must avoid drinking and driving.

Collisions

A crash, or collision, happens when a vehicle hits another object, whether the object is moving or not. By law, any driver involved in a collision must stop.

Financial Responsibilities

Operating Costs: As a driver, you are responsible for your operating costs, which include costs for fuel, oil, and tires.

Fixed Costs : Your fixed costs are not determined by how many miles you drive. Fixed costs include the purchase price of your car, any licensing fees, and your insurance.

Crash Costs: Driver error is the most common cause of all collisions. Traffic crashes cost our nation billions of dollars each year in property damage, time away from work, and medical fees.

If a crash is determined to be your fault, you will be responsible for paying for any injuries sustained by the people involved in the collision or damages to any property.

Environmental Responsibilities

Environmental threats created by motor-vehicle use include air pollution, water pollution, chemical spills, and pollution caused by the disposal of vehicle-related products.

You can reduce pollution and preserve our environment by

•buying and maintaining fuel-efficient vehicles•using fuel-efficient driving habits•using car pools and public transportation•recycling used materials•working for strong policies that encourage energy-efficient

driving

Responsibilities to Yourself and Others

As a driver, it is your responsibility to make rational driving decisions to protect yourself and others.

Driving recklessly and aggressively are high-risk behaviors that are disrespectful and dangerous to other drivers.

Show common courtesy and control your anger or frustration at all times.

Friends might try to pressure you to do things that can affect your ability to drive safely.

Saying no to a friend isn’t easy. Show respect for yourself and others and don’t give in to negative pressure.

Graduated Driver Licensing Program (GDL)

The graduated driver licensing program (GDL) requires young drivers to progress through a series of licensing stages.

Typically these programs have three stages:

• learner’s permit stage• intermediate license stage• full-privilege license stage

Research shows that: “…graduated licensing programs have had positive effects on the crash experience of young drivers in the United States and other countries, including Canada and New Zealand. In U.S. states that have adopted elements of graduated licensing, the safety benefits are evident. Almost all studies have found crash reductions from about 10 to 30 percent.”

Graduated licensing programs have three stages. Ages and time periods vary by state.

Learner’s Permit Stage

The learner receives a permit to drive when supervised by an adult, licensed driver.

•The permit must be held for a minimum period—usually six months—of violation-free and collision-free driving.

•Other licensed drivers, such as family members, may be asked to provide a minimum number of hours of practice driving.

Intermediate License Stage

The learner must have successfully completed the learner’s permit stage and an approved driver-education course.

•Supervised driving may be continued to meet the required hours.

•Night driving is restricted.•Passengers can be limited in age and/or number.•The intermediate license must be held for at least six

months of collision-free and violation-free driving. •Penalties for violations are increased.

Full-Privilege License Stage

To qualify for a full, unrestricted license stage, the learner must

•successfully complete the intermediate license stage with no violations and no collisions

•in some states, complete an advanced driver-education course

Implied Consent Laws

All states have enacted the implied consent law.

When you get your driver’s license, you agree that if you are stopped for cause and charged with drinking and driving, you consent to having a police officer give you a test for the presence of alcohol.

If you refuse to take the test, you will lose your license.

Driver Education and Your License

Quality driver-education programs provide the opportunity to learn and practice driving skills you need to be a responsible driver.

The Drive Right driver-education program is based in part on the following key concepts:

•Driving is primarily a decision-making process. You will learn how to use the IPDE Process and Zone Control to become a safe driver.

•Your maturity, emotions, and attitude affect your driving.•You need to know your limits and the vehicle’s.•Drugs and alcohol will impair your ability to be a low-

risk driver.

Practice driving under a wide variety of traffic situations and road conditions, such as night driving and hazardous weather. Only then can you begin to think of yourself as an accomplished new driver.

No driving program can teach you everything you will need to know to be a safe driver.

Remember, the best drivers never stop learning.

Organ Donor Program

You can fill out an organ donation declaration on your driver’s license or by signing an organ donor card.

The most important step in considering organ donation is discussing your decision with your family.