Driver safety is one of the main considerations for state governments looking to reduce motor vehicle accidents. Accidents on the roadways cause serious injuries and even death on a daily basis.
In Texas, the state’s Department of Transportation has implemented a wide range of initiatives to encourage and improve driver safety and efficiency on the roads, from drunk driving public education programs to managed lanes. Here is an overview of three of those initiatives:
1. Faces of Drunk Driving program
The Texas Department of Transportation’s Faces of Drunk Driving program is an initiative aimed at improving safety on the roads through decreasing the number of drunk drivers. It does so through a public awareness and education campaign that includes a website with individual stories related to the consequences of drunk driving. By using real people to tell their stories, the Texas DOT is able to humanize the problem of drunk driving and let the public know how it affects individual lives and families. One such individual featured on the website is a young girl who had a very serious injury as a result of a drunk driver. That accident included a head-on collision, one of many types of accidents that can lead to serious personal injury due to another driver’s negligence.
2. Teen Click It or Ticket
The Texas DOT says that vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among teenagers. In its “Teen Click It or Ticket” program, it aims to educate teens on the dangers of driving without a seat belt and provide education to encourage teens to buckle up every time they are in a car. Texas law requires that all passengers in a vehicle wear a seat belt. There can be heavy penalties for not observing this law, including fines of up to $200 and driver’s license suspension.
3. Share the Road motorcycle safety campaign
Motorcyclists are at a particularly high risk for personal injury due to road accidents. By the very nature of their vehicle, they are much less protected than drivers of cars and trucks. In addition, drivers are less aware of and attentive to motorcyclists on Texas roadways. The state’s Share the Road campaign aims to raise awareness about motorcyclists and help drivers understand how to “look twice” for drivers on motorcycles, in order to prevent accidents.