The Daily Drive: Educating Parents and Teen Drivers

Episode 32: A father's mission to end distracted driving

As we continue with episodes dedicated to Distracted Driving Awareness Month, Joel Feldman tells us why he and his wife started the nonprofit End Distracted Driving after his daughter Casey was tragically hit and killed by a distracted driver when she was crossing the street. She was only 21 years old. Joel posed the question, if parents are willing to do anything to keep their children safe, why do so many parents still drive distracted?  He has classes with kids and he will ask them to raise their hands if mom and dad drive distracted and he said typically around 70% raise their hands.  Joel is optimistic that we can get people to put their phones down and he's starting with elementary school age kids. Hear more from Joel and his movement to Ending Distracted Driving. 

Episode 31: Eyes Drive: are eyes the key to distracted driving?

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, a perfect opportunity to encourage your family, friends, and peers to end distracted driving. In reading some recent statistics, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration stated that roughly 20% of injuries occurring in car crashes involve distracted driving. The Center for Diseases Control stated that Distracted driving claims eight lives per day — approximately 3,500 -- and an additional 387,000 people were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving a distracted driver. With young people among the most likely to text and talk behind the wheel, this week on #TheDailyDrive we have three traffic safety experts who would like to tell you about EyesDrive, a national campaign with easy to share social content that educates, advocates, and builds awareness on the dangers of distracted driving. You'll hear from Jim Graham with the Ford Motor Company Fund, Linda Fech with the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning and Robbie Buhl, Founder and Lead Instructor of Teen Street Skills.

Episode 30: Testing your rail road crossing safety knowledge

Roughly every three hours in the U.S. there's a train vs vehicle/pedestrian collision. That's crazy, right? Learn more about this staggering statistic and also how you can help to prevent these collisions when operation Lifesaver's Rachel Maleh and Jennifer DeAngelis test our own Mike Speck's rail safety knowledge. How do you think he'll do? 

Episode 29: Prioritizing the safety, accessibility, and mobility of bicyclists

Safety is a two-way street. We’re all responsible for keeping each other safe on our roads. On March 1 the Florida Department of Transportation kicked off #FloridaBicycleMonth. This provides an opportunity to encourage bicycling and recognize its important role in providing transportation and recreation to millions of people. It also provides an opportunity to highlight the rules and regulations necessary to help keep it a safe and fun activity. Trenda McPherson, Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Program Manager with the Florida Department of Transportation's Traffic Safety Office, and Melissa Wandall, Campaign Ambassador for Alert Today Florida, are here to talk to us about prioritizing the safety, accessibility and mobility of bicyclists. Bike safety and sharing the road with drivers is more important now than ever.

Episode 28: Safety benefits of roundabouts

Today we are talking to Jim Brainard, Mayor of Carmel, Indiana. He's the first seven-term mayor. Under his tenure, Carmel has experienced tremendous growth and prosperity. It is considered one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. The population has grown from 25,000 to almost 100,000 in the last 25 years. Mayor Brainard has implemented numerous environmental and traffic safety initiatives for the City of Carmel. He has encouraged the construction of roundabouts in place of traditional signaled intersections, which have reduced vehicle emissions and accidents with injuries. He is here today to talk to us about the benefits of roundabouts, where his passion for these corner-less intersections comes from, and why Carmel bills itself as the roundabout capital of the U.S.