State Launches High School PSA Contest During National Teen Driver Safety Week

Denver – As part of National Teen Driver Safety Week, the student council at Abraham Lincoln High School in Denver is challenging fellow teens, as well as adults, to turn off their cell phones when they get behind the wheel. The students also plan to enter a Public Service Announcement (PSA) contest launched today by Colorado’s Teen Motor Vehicle Leadership Alliance, a group of government agencies and private entities focused on keeping young drivers safe. The theme of the PSA contest is the upcoming ban on the use of cell phones by teen drivers under age 18, which goes into effect Dec. 1st. The law also includes a ban on text messaging only for drivers age 18 and older.

“There are a lot of students who don’t know about the new law, so it is important that they become aware of it and also about the dangers of distracted driving,” said Jennifer Cole, student council president at Abraham Lincoln High School. “We’re trying to get the word out to ‘power down’ your phone as soon as you get in the car. We know that breaking the habit of texting or calling behind the wheel isn’t going to be easy, so it’s important do it now -- not only to avoid a ticket, but to save lives.”

Last year in Colorado, 48 young people age 15 to 20, were killed in motor vehicle crashes. That’s down more than 50 percent from the 112 fatalities for this age group in 2002. Safety experts credit the decline in deaths to the strengthening of the Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) law in Colorado, which includes passenger restrictions, requires seat belt use and sets a curfew on new teen drivers. Safety advocates hope the new ban on cell phone use by teen drivers under 18 will save even more lives.

“The first year that a teen holds their driver’s license is the most dangerous time, and it’s critical that distractions like cell phones be eliminated so that they can gradually build skills and confidence to be safe drivers,” said Lt. Col. Doyle Eicher of the Colorado State Patrol. “But teens certainly aren’t the only ones who put themselves and other at risk by talking or texting while driving. Adults need to take responsibility and set an example by turning off their phone in the car to take away the temptation of using it. Change your voicemail message to include that ‘you may be driving’ so they should leave a message and you’ll call back.”

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly 6,000 people died in 2008 in crashes involving a distracted or inattentive driver, and more than half a million were injured. And on any given day, more than 800,000 vehicles are driven by someone using a hand-held cell phone.

Today, State Farm Insurance presented special awards to State Rep. Claire Levy of Boulder and Sen. Bob Bacon of Fort Collins for sponsoring Colorado's new law aimed at protecting drivers. “These legislators have taken steps to help reduce the number of teen crashes and ultimately save lives here in Colorado,” said Chester Ferguson, State Farm Vice President-Operations, Colorado.

Members of the Teen Motor Vehicle Leadership Alliance hope the PSA contest will encourage high school students to help inform their peers of the dangers of distracted driving and the new law. The contest is open to all high school age students across Colorado. There are three categories of PSAs to enter, including video, radio and print ads. The winning entries will be distributed to statewide media to begin running in December. There will also be prizes awarded to the top entries. The student with the best video PSA will receive a Sony Digital camcorder donated by Best Buy and a $100 gift card to Wal-Mart. The winner of the top radio PSA will get an Apple iPod Nano donated by The Bret Kay Happiness Foundation, and a flip video camcorder donated by Master Drive. The winner of the print PSA will receive $500 from the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association and four tickets to the Denver Museum of Contemporary Art. The deadline to enter is Nov. 16th. More information and contest rules are available at www.coteendriver.com.
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