Illinois Injury Law Blog

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) has recruited a number of corporate sponsors along with the Illinois State Police (ISP) and the Illinois Secretary of State to celebrate the fifth annual Operation Teen Safe Driving (OTSD) program. This program aims to reduce the number of fatal teen car accidents in Illinois. It uses a creative and interactive way to involve our teens in the learning process. Through this program, each state high school is able to apply to win their school a $2,000 grant to help implement a student-organized program to ensure safe driving habits among teen drivers.

“The OTSD program is making a dramatic difference in the lives of Illinois teens, as evidenced by the 45 percent reduction in teen fatalities over the past four years,” said Ann Schneider, the Transportation Secretary.

Our Chicago car accident attorneys encourage teens to get involved in the program. There can be up to five schools to win spots with cash prizes. Prize money is to be used for their after-prom events, which aim to keep teens from drinking and driving. Winning schools are also invited to the Driving Skills for Life Ride and Drive program that's hosted by the Ford Motor Company Fund.

Jim Vella, President of the Ford Fund says that he and the company are happy to announce that this is the fifth successful year that this event has been held for teens in our area. He and the company continue to commit their efforts to help keep teens safe on our roadways. He would also like to remind teens and parents that traffic accidents are the number one cause of death for teens in the United States.

The Allstate Foundation is another organization that focuses heavily on the safety of teen drivers on our roadways. The Foundation focuses on the effects of distracted driving habits on our newly licensed drivers. They too support the efforts of the Operation Teen Safe Driving program.

You can apply to have your school become a part of the fight against dangerous teen driving habits. All applications are due by October 1, 2011 for next school year. At least ten schools will be chosen from each of Illinois' academic regions. Each chosen school will receive $2,000 to go towards its very own safe teen driving program. Out of all the schools that start their own safe teen driving program, five will be selected to attend a Driving Skills for Life Ride and Drive program.

Secretary of State Jesse White says the number of fatal teen accidents has indeed decreased since the start of this program. The program has also been credited with strengthening the state's graduated driver licensing (GDL) program, which took effect back in 2008. Since then, the number of teen accident fatalities has been cut nearly in half.

There were more than 100 high schools in our state that participated in the program during the 2010-2011 school year. Students arranged assemblies, created bumper stickers, accident re-enactments, set up traffic signs and offered fatal goggle simulations to student drivers in the area to raise awareness about the dangers of lackadaisical driving habits.

Teens are some of the most vulnerable drivers on our roadways as they lack a significant amount of driving experience. Through programs like this, teens can gain access to important driving information that can help to keep them safe and out of a traffic accident on our roadways. Officials expect an even bigger turnout for the upcoming year.