Teen Driver Safety Should Continue After October 20th

YOU can make a difference! It is not too late to support National Teen Driver Safety Week: October 14th - 20th.  In 2007, Congress designated the third week of every October as National Teen Driver Saftey Week. The focus of this week is to encourage parents, novice drivers, lawmakers, and educators to work together to help save lives. 

This year's 6th annual theme is "Share, Not Scare".  While graphic videos of car crashes get the attention of teens, it isn't the best way to change behavior.  Talk to teens about safe driving! and continue to talk!  Help teens to set action plans to aid them in making good decisions when faced with situations that may challenge their safety.

Virtual Driver Interactive's committment to teen driver saftey is expressed in their products. Driving simulation is an important part of education teens to make safe decisions when they are behind the wheel.  Call us or visit our website for more information - 877-746-8332.

Each of us can make a difference!

Innovative Driver Training for Today's Best Managed Fleets

Be among the first organizations to see Virtual HD™ from Virtual Driver Interactive.

CEO & President, Bob Davis, will discuss how hazard detection simulation training can lower training costs while improving driver safety. Every company has its own challenges and objectives, so each demonstration time slot is dedicated only to a single company. Space is limited. Call or email today to reserve your slot. We look forward to seeing you at the demonstration.

Virtual HD Demonstrations:

Monday 10/8 - Washington DC Monday 10/15 - Toronto
Tuesday 10/9 - New Jersey Wednesday 10/17 - Chicago
Wednesday 10/10 - New York Thursday 10/18 - Houston
Thursday 10/11 - Connecticut Friday 10/19 - Dallas

More Locations TBD
1-877-746-8332 vdiwebinquiry@driverinteractive.com

VDI's Driving Simulators featured at Maryland State Fair

VDI’s simulator with ‘One Simple Decision’ program is featured at the Maryland State Fair courtesy of the Maryland Automobile Insurance fund. Kameron Williams, 16, crashes the virtual car during a demonstration of the distracted driving simulator. David Foxwell, 17, is sentenced by a virtual judge after crashing his virtual car in the simulator.

Can your program benefit with a Driving Simulator from Virtual Driver Interactive? Call us for more information. Click here to see more from our web page: www.driverinteractive.com. "ONLY in Simulation"

 

International Public Works Congress & Exposition

We Invite You to Come by Booth #1627 to see Virtual HD™ in action at the 2012 International Public Works Congress & Exposition in Anaheim, CA August 26-28, 2012 To receive your complimentary Exhibit Pass ($35 value) click http://www2.apwa.net/Meetings/Congress/register1.asp?sc=32017

For more information, click HERE for Driver Interactive.com

Rural Roads Present Hazards That Can Be Deadly

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently released a study indicating that although 19% of the US population lived in rural areas in 2010, 55% of fatalities occurred on rural roads . . . 2.5 times the rate of fatal crashes on urban roads.   \

 Secondary roads in remote and/or rural areas present hazards that drivers accustomed to travelling on urban and suburban roadways may not be aware of such as blind curves, narrow width (causing difficulty when passing), no shoulder or guard rails, soft surface (dirt or gravel), damaged road surface, obstacles on road (slow-moving vehicles, animals, debris) and unusually steep hills or sharp curves. 

Obtaining help may be difficult to reach or unavailable in the event of an accident in rural areas, so it is particularly important to exercise caution when driving in remote areas. 

In fact, in 2010, rural drivers represented 71% of drivers who died en route to the hospital compared to only 29% for urban drivers. For the complete NHTSA Report:  http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811637.pdf.

Want more information, contact Drivers Interactive.com

Virtual Driver Interactive’s “One Simple Decision” program and simulators featured in edition of USA Today!

Simulator shows young drivers the risks of distraction

By Larry Copeland, USA TODAY

One of the most persistent challenges for teen-driving safety advocates is getting novice drivers to understand that their actions behind the wheel can have far-reaching implications.

By Jay LaPrete, for USA TODAY

Josh Townley tries out a new computer simulation program that forces young drivers to experience the consequences of the choices they make behind the wheel.

Several advocacy groups around the USA are turning to a driving simulation program that focuses on the long-term consequences of distracted and drunken driving.

One Simple Decision, created by Virtual Driver Interactive Inc. (VDI), one of the nation's largest driving simulator manufacturers, seeks to modify driver behavior by showing drivers what can happen if they have a crash while driving under the influence or texting while driving. It combines simulated driving and interactions with police, judges and emergency medical personnel in an intense, 20-minute experience featuring a real judge, actual sheriff's deputies and EMTs.

Harry Mochel, now 19, of Rye, N.Y., experienced One Simple Decison about a year ago at a private driver's education school in Rye. "I'd been driving for a little while already," he says. "My parents had heard about it and said you should try it."

He says he was "driving" along on the simulator. "It tells you to start texting, so I took out my phone and started texting," he says. "I ended up crashing into a stop sign and got into a head-on collision. It's crazy to see how easy it was."

Just like real life, though, that was just the beginning of his troubles. "The real powerful part was that as soon as you got into the crash, the scene changes from the driving simulation scene to actual video footage of a cop walking up to you," says Mochel, now a freshman at Tulane University in New Orleans. "As he comes up, he shines a light in your face and says, 'Have you been drinking?'

"Then you have the police booking you into jail, and the court," Mochel says. "It puts everything in perspective and makes it really realistic."

The Ohio Department of Transportation paid $42,000 for four VDI simulators and uses the One Simple Decision program at events such as school days, football games and county fairs around the state, spokeswoman Melissa Ayers says.

"We recognized that there is an issue, especially among young drivers, with paying attention to the road," she says. "We started using it last year. We've gotten really good feedback. The kids realize after they've used it, 'I really can't do two things at once (while driving).' "

The program is catching on just as the federal government documents how widespread distracted driving is among the nation's youth and renews its push to curb it. Earlier this month, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood intensified his 3½-year fight against distracted driving, which he says accounts for about one in 10 road fatalities — 3,092 deaths in 2010.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also released the first-ever federal statistics on how widespread distracted driving is among the nation's youth. The CDC's 2011 anonymous national survey of more than 15,000 high school students found that 58% of high school seniors admitted to texting or e-mailing while driving during the previous month.

Bob Davis, the CEO and founder of Virtual Driver Interactive, says he created the One Simple Decision program after his research found that many teen drivers misunderstood the potential impact of their behavior while driving.

"I asked, 'What's the downside of texting while driving?' " Davis says. "They said, I know it's like a $25 ticket, which is not that much money. They interpreted the law as the downside was a $25 ticket. … The (simulation) experience for the kids has to be a personal one to make it really effective."

VDI's surveys found that 86% of teens and young adults who had experienced One Simple Decision said they would rarely or never drive distracted in the future; 71% said the consequences of bad choices behind the wheel were worse or much worse than they first thought, the company says.

Toyota and Discovery Education use the software for their joint teen driving-safety program, Toyota Teen Driver. "I believe in it. I really do," says Kelly Fisher, Toyota's assistant manager for national philanthropy.

John Robert Elliott, 15, of Mouton, Ala., used the program during the just-ended school year at Lawrence County High School. "It helped me prepare to be on the road," says John Robert, who has his learner's permit. "It makes you think about what you do while you're driving."

Number One Cause of Accidents and Deaths among Teens - Texting while Driving

SPREAD THE WORD

The Seattle Post Intelligencer last week reported that texting while driving has replaced drinking while driving as the leading cause of accidents/deaths among teen drivers. In 2010, 3,000 people were killed in distracted-driving crashes and last year more than 11,000 deaths attributed to texting and driving! The under-25 age group is nearly three times more likely than older drivers to send text messages or emails while driving. Keep your eyes and mind ON THE ROAD.