In response to the increasing number of teen-age motorists killed on Kentucky's roadways, the Blue Grass Auto Club Safety Foundation is offering a new program entitled "Teaching Your Teen to Drive: A Partnership for Survival". This special program will help parents provide supervised driving experience to novice drivers. According to a recent survey by the Kentucky Department of Education, almost 60% of school districts in the state do not offer a driver education program. This includes both Fayette and Jefferson counties, the two largest school districts in the state.

In 1994, teenage drivers (ages 16-19) represented only 7% of all drivers in the state of Kentucky. However, teenage drivers were involved in 22% of all motor vehicle accidents, 25% of all injury accidents, and 17% of all fatal accidents. In 1994, accidents in which teenage drivers were involved resulted in 142 fatalities, 62 of which were teenage drivers. Most fatal crashes involving teenage drivers are the result of driver inexperience, poor driving skills, risk-taking or poor decision making.

"Today's teens usually have little driving experience when they get their licenses," says Lilla Mason, Director of the Blue Grass Auto Club Safety Foundation. "Unless teens can afford private driving instruction, many young drivers do not have the driver training that was once available through high school driver education classes. Parents can help fill this void by helping young drivers get an adequate amount of well-supervised practice time."

The "Teaching Your Teen to Drive" program offers parents a simple methods for properly preparing their teenage driver for the road. A handbook offers thirteen easy-to-follow driving lessons, beginning with the most basic driving procedures and finishing with the most advanced driving techniques, including how to properly drive on snow and ice. An instructional video is also included to visually reinforce the lessons the handbook offers. A separate teacher's handbook is also available, enabling the program to be used as a school-based driver education program. The video and handbook are available for $24.95 and can be ordered through the Blue Grass Auto Club Safety Foundation by contacting 1-800-568-5222.

The Blue Grass Auto Club Safety Foundation is a non-profit organization that serves as an educational resource for schools and communities interested in promoting safety awareness throughout Central and Eastern Kentucky.