Traffic collisions are the leading cause of death for teenagers in the United States. In response to this troubling fact, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) has partnered with Impact Teen Drivers with a shared goal, to change the teen culture and make distracted driving intolerable. The yearlong traffic safety campaign continues through September 2014.

“Enforcement alone is not the answer – education plays an equally important role in keeping California’s teenage drivers safe,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “We encourage parents to get involved by talking to their teen driver about the rules of the road and by being good role models behind the wheel.”

The teen driver program is designed to provide awareness and education to teenagers, their parents, teachers, and community members about distracted and reckless driving. The ultimate mission of this partnership is to reduce the number of injuries and deaths caused by distracted driving and poor decision making by teenage drivers.

“It is crucial that we educate teens and empower them to make good decisions behind the wheel,” said Kelly Browning, Executive Director of Impact Teen Drivers. “It is primarily through this cultural change that we can eliminate the number one killer of teens in America – reckless and distracted driving.”

Impact Teen Drivers communicates an educational message to teenage drivers using plain language and relevant messages. Most importantly, the program inspires teenagers to commit to being a responsible driver.

The grant-funded Teen Distracted Drivers Education and Enforcement III campaign consists of an education component, as well as teen distracted driver enforcement operations to be conducted throughout the state. Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.