TEEN DRIVER SAFETY WEEK PUTS FOCUS ON YOUNG DRIVERS

							              TEEN DRIVER SAFETY WEEK PUTS
                FOCUS ON YOUNG DRIVERS


NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2008 -- Teens are the most likely drivers to be involved in
a crash, and statistics show the chances increase by 20 percent in late October
as daylight hours get shorter, says The National Road Safety Foundation, Inc.,
a non-profit group that promotes safer roads through driver education and
training.


The second annual National Teen Driver Safety Week, Oct. 19 – 25, hopes to call
attention to what is a serious health issue, with more than 7,400 teen drivers in-
volved in fatal crashes every year.    Crashes involving teenage drivers are the
leading cause of death and injury for people between the ages of 15 and 20.
More than 1.7 million teen drivers are involved in traffic crashes every year, re-
sulting in an estimated $40 billion in property damage, health-related costs and
lost productivity.


For more than 30 years, The National Road Safety Foundation has been creat-
ing traffic safety films, books and other educational materials for free distribu-
tion to schools and other groups nationwide. The free materials, which focus
on teen driver safety issues including drinking and driving, speed and aggres-
sive driving, and drowsy and distracted driving, are available to order or
download at www.nationalroadsafety.org.


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Contact:
 David Reich
 (212) 573-6000
 david@reichcommunications.com