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PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
From 1996
to 1998, Montgomery County, Tennessee ranked 14th out of 95 counties
in its overall rate of traffic crashes. Data further indicated that
the county ranked 13th statewide for injury crashes, 18th for youth
driver crashes, and 30th for alcohol-related crashes.
Although fatal
traffic crashes in Tennessee have decreased since 1994, alcohol-related
crashes and fatalities involving youth have increased steadily during
this same period. In 1998, teenagers comprised 6.3 percent of licensed
drivers in Montgomery County, yet they were involved in 26 percent of
the total traffic crashes.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
In an effort to combat
alcohol-related traffic crashes and fatalities involving youth in Montgomery
County, the North Tennessee Private Industry Council established Safety
Net in 1999. Objectives of the program were to:
- Reduce the number of alcohol-related
youth crashes and fatalities to below 17 percent of total crashes
- Increase
public awareness of youth highway safety-related issues, and educate
teen drivers about the tragic results of impaired driving and aggressive
driving behaviors
STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
The
North Tennessee Private Industry Council first formed a Safety Net
advisory council comprised of representatives from local law enforcement,
health services, insurance agencies, business and industry, schools,
concerned citizens and teen youth coordinators. The advisory council
met to determine strategies and help implement an effective intervention
plan to address the issue of youth impaired driving, and to monitor
program progress. Intervention strategies implemented through the advisory
council's comprehensive plan include:
- Development
and implementation of an Attitude Adjustment curriculum for
in-school and out-of school presentations throughout the year, at
six participating county high schools. This curriculum urges youth
to consider safer driving practices, and addresses teen driving attitudes
such as inattention, inexperience, impatience and "It won't happen
to me"
- Establishment
of a T.E.A.M. (Teaching, Evaluating, Applying, Monitoring) program
to enable parents and youth to work together to help teens learn safe
driving skills. Youth participants receive prizes and coupons for
successfully completing the program
- Production
of television and radio public service announcements addressing the
tragic results of drinking and driving
- Creation
of a public awareness campaign disseminated through local media and
area businesses, utilizing printed handout materials designed to be
delivered in mail outs from restaurants, insurance companies and banks,
or placed in the paychecks of teen workers
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