Why Distracted Driving Education is Especially Important During Summer

Help keep everyone safe on the road this summer with distracted driving education.

As the summer season arrives, more people hit the roads for long-awaited road trips or simply to enjoy the season’s bright, sunny days. While this increased traffic brings joy and excitement, it also increases the risk of distracted driving incidents on highways and roads nationwide. 

As school and community educators focused on reducing distracted driving, summer and the months leading up to it are an incredibly important time to provide your students and community members with information about the risks associated with distracted driving, and how they can help keep our roads safe in the summer.

In this blog, we’ll share our tips for providing distracted driving education for these crucial summer months, plus information on the actions behind distracted driving and how you can effectively stress the risks to your students or program participants. 

Why is distracted driving more prevalent in summer?

With more people hitting the roads for vacations, beach trips, and outdoor activities, the risk of distractions behind the wheel increases in the summer months. From answering phone calls and checking social media to eating, tending to children, and changing the music, there are numerous distractions that can tempt drivers to turn their attention away from the road.

Distracted driving education is always important, but during this time of year, properly illustrating the causes and risks involved becomes even more essential. By raising awareness and reminding young drivers to stay focused on the road ahead, we can work towards reducing the number of accidents and injuries caused by distracted driving.

Distracted driving education goes beyond just explaining the dangers; it also involves teaching drivers strategies to avoid distractions and stay focused on the road. With proper education, drivers can make informed decisions that prioritize their safety and that of those around them. It’s a responsibility that each driver has to take seriously, and it starts with being educated.

How can you help?

As the school year draws to a close and summer approaches, it’s important to remember that distracted driving doesn’t take vacations. One of the best practices for sharing distracted driving education is to focus lessons prior to the end of the school year, so that students are reminded of the dangers of texting and driving before they hit the roads on summer break. 

Engaging people during community events like festivals, fairs, and National Night Out is also a great way to spread the message throughout the season outside of a traditional classroom setting. Booths and exhibits can be set up with interactive activities, games, and informational materials to capture people’s attention and provide them with valuable education on the topic. By utilizing these best practices, we can help ensure that everyone stays safe on the roads this summer.

Hands-on tools for distracted driving education

Another fantastic way to connect with students in your distracted driving education program is with hands-on, engaging tools that help get them more involved with the material and increase learning retention.

The Fatal Vision Plan My Ride eLearning Program offers a research-based, self-paced online distracted driving education program that gives students the skills they need to avoid distracted driving in real-life situations.

If you’ll be seeing students in person, or hosting a booth at a National Night Out or another community event, the Fatal Vision Fatal Vision® Drowsy and Distracted Campaign Kit gives you a pair of distracted driving simulation goggles and all of the activities you need to provide fun, engaging education. You can also pair the goggles with the Roadster Pedal Kart or SIDNE driving simulators to help truly illustrate the serious risk of distracted driving in a safe, controlled environment.

Effective distracted driving education is key to addressing this pervasive issue, especially during the summer months when more drivers are on the road. Keeping our roads safe requires continued commitment from everyone and encourages others to do their part — whether by setting an example yourself or educating others about researching and preventing distractions behind the wheel. 

To learn more about Fatal Vision’s distracted driving education tools and products, visit our distracted driving resources page, browse our online store, or contact our team today!