It’s a huge milestone – handing over the car keys to your newly qualified teenage driver and letting them head off behind the wheel on their own.
If you’re nervous about your kids driving, you have every right to be – road crashes are the single biggest killer of New Zealanders aged between 15 and 19, and our teen crash rates are among the worst in the developed world.
But before you snatch back the keys and resign yourself to being an unpaid taxi driver for the foreseeable future, it’s worth knowing the steps you can take to help your kids be safer on the roads.
The New Zealand Transport Authority (NZTA) has launched a campaign to improve the poor road safety of our young drivers, and is providing practical advice through the website www.safeteendriver.co.nz
It’s aimed not only at helping teenagers learn to drive safely, but also at reducing the risks of having an accident once they’re on a restricted licence.
Michael Cummins from the NZTA says too many of us assume that passing their tests means our kids are ready to drive on their own.
“Passing the test is only the beginning of the journey, and parents still have a crucial role to play in helping teens become safe drivers,” Michael says.
“Teaching teens to drive doesn’t just involve practical skills. They also need to understand the mental skills and maturity required to be a safe driver. Things such as assessing yourself, reading the road environment, resisting peer pressure, managing distractions and planning ahead are all vital skills for safe driving.”
Research shows the first six to 12 months of driving solo on a restricted licence is the time when teen drivers are most at risk of having a serious crash. Every year for the past five years there have been around 1300 crashes resulting in injury or death involving teen drivers on a restricted licence.
As well as practical advice relating to driving techniques, the website also includes tips from psychologist Dr Ian Lambie on ways to talk to your teens about their driving so that they don’t feel they’re being lectured or talked down to.
Here is some information and tips from the website.**
Read the conditions**
Talk to your teen:
Discuss how wet and loose road surfaces affect braking distances, and going too fast for the conditions doesn’t necessarily mean speeding.
Raise the issue when you’re in a particularly challenging situation – for example, driving in the rain. Make it clear that it’s about reaction time, not driving ability.
Try this:
Find an excuse to go out when it’s wet.
Get them to drive.
Keep an eye on their speed, acceleration and cornering.
Discuss the difference in how the car responded.
Do your bit:
Review the roads they drive on together.
Help them identify the main hazards they encounter.
Help them plan a safer alternative route.
Discuss how to spot bad weather ahead.
Talk about dealing with unexpected hazards on familiar roads.
Get them to agree to:
Show you they understand which situations you should slow down in.
Be aware of risks further ahead on the motorway.
Leave greater room for error on unsealed roads.
oanage distractions
Talk to your teen:
Discuss distractions like passengers, music and phones, and how it takes 2.5 seconds to switch from talking to reacting.
Remind them that passengers without driving experience don’t know when to let drivers focus.
Try this:
Get them to drive to a familiar location.
Ask them to point out the hazards as they drive.
Distract them by asking a lot of questions.
Point out situations where they were slow to react to what was happening.
Do your bit:
Follow the same rules as the ones you set for them.
Get them to drive with you and their siblings in the car to give them safe experience of carrying passengers.
Get them to agree to:
Put the phone out of reach.
Not answer the phone, no matter who is calling.
only check texts or answer phone calls when the car is parked.
Not change music while driving, even while waiting at the lights.
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
