LOOKIN’ FOR ADVENTURE. During a face-to-face forum with two high schools in Lewisberry on Thursday, state representatives from PennDOT, the Department of Education and Pa. State Police met with local education and law enforcement representatives to share their collective knowledge concerning driver safety.

According to PennDOT Secretary Kurt Myers, “Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death for teens,” in Pennsylvania, however according to the CDC, vehicle crashes are the second leading cause of death for teens in the U.S. Either way, teaching your teenager to be a safe and attentive driver is an important part of keeping them alive.

From 2017 to 2021, there were 81,364 crashes involving at least one 16- to 19-year-old driver in Pa., resulting in 480 deaths — 66 percent of those crashes involved a teen driver driving too fast for conditions. Driver inexperience, driver distraction or improper/careless turning were a factor in the remaining reported crashes.

The roundtable forum in Lewisberry was held in observance of Teen Driver Safety Week, October 16 through 22, giving students the chance to ask questions directly of the State Representatives.

According to the CDC, there are eight main “Danger Zones” to remain mindful of when it comes to making sure a young driver is driving safely. Those danger zones include driver inexperience, driving with teen passengers, nighttime driving, not using seat belts, distracted driving, drowsy driving, reckless driving or impaired driving.

However, the risk of a crash involving any of these factors can be reduced through practice, limiting the number of passengers riding with a new driver, obeying all rules of the road and using common sense.