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PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
Motor vehicle crashes
continue to kill and seriously injure children nationwide. The proper
use of seat belts and child safety seats can drastically reduce crash-related
deaths and injuries. In fact, data indicate that the correct use of
child safety seats reduce the risk of infant death by as much as 71
percent and the death of toddlers by more than 50 percent. NHTSA estimates
that 365 lives were saved by the use of child restraints during 1996.
If child safety seat compliance had been 100 percent in that year, an
additional 195 lives would have been saved.
Teenagers die in motor vehicle
crashes at twice the rate of the rest of the population. This data does
not even include teenagers' high incidence of serious injuries resulting
in lifelong disabilities. Teenage drivers in the New York Capital District,
which includes Albany, Schenectady, Rensselaer and Saratoga, typify
the statistics of the national population. A 1995 study of 2,588 high
school students, primarily in the Capital District, indicated a very
high rate of alcohol consumption associated with teenage driving.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
At the end of 1998, the
Corporate Community Partnership for Traffic Safety was formed to prevent
death and injury to infants, children and young adults in the Capital
District. The Partnership developed a collaborative injury prevention
effort with the following objectives:
- To raise community awareness
of the issue of childhood injury prevention
- To positively impact the
actions of youthful drivers and those who transport children
- Involve local media including
television, radio and newspapers in increasing public awareness of
injury prevention efforts
STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
The Partnership encompasses a variety of companies
and organizations throughout the Capital District. These include Albany
County STOP-DWI, Capital District Physicians Health Plan Incorporated,
Schenectady County STOP-DWI, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), Sunnyview
Hospital Injury Prevention Services, Albany Citizens Council on Alcoholism
and Other Chemical Dependencies Incorporated, Albany County Remove
Intoxicated Drivers, New York State Police, Time Warner Cable, Stewarts
Shops, St. Peter's Addiction Recovery Center/Mercy Care Corporation,
Albany County Traffic Safety Board, General Electric Plastics, Pepsi
Arena and the Times Union newspaper.
Each organization brings expertise and resources
to the collaborative effort. The partners are currently focusing their
attention on a variety of activities including:
- Lowering the legal blood alcohol concentration
(BAC) limit from 0.10 to 0.08 BAC
- Training parents and caregivers in proper installation
and use of child safety seats
- Providing targeted education on drugs, alcohol
and binge drinking
- Facilitating prevention, intervention and treatment
measures for alcohol and drug users
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