DALLAS — Moms and dads all across North Texas will watch their teenagers drive off to work or school.
Most of them will get there safely, but hundreds of families send their kids out the door every year and don’t get to welcome them back.
Car crashes are one of the leading causes of death for teenagers in their first few years behind the wheel.
In 2020, more than 2,000 people died in crashes involving teen drivers.
Over the next couple of days, transportation officials, as well as WFAA's Tashara Parker, will use “National Teen Driver Safety Week” to bring some attention to a problem we can all help solve.
Our team went down to Ellis County to see how one driving school is getting new drivers prepared for these crazy North Texas roads.
Randy Broyles is one of the instructors there and he’s been at it for more than 30 years.
He says the biggest issues he sees with teen drivers are speeding, cell phones and stopping all the way for stop signs, but he has a way to make sure that lesson sticks.
"If you go past the stop sign, you have to put the car in park and get out and hug it because you neglected the stop sign," Broyles said with a smile. "So I’ve had many a kid out there hugging the stop sign, they don’t run the second one usually."
Randy says a lot of problems start before kids even get in the car with him… thanks to all you parents out there!
Your kids have spent years watching you drive and those bad habits are contagious.
Randy says parents can do three things to prepare their teenagers:
- Actively help them practice
- Go out of your way to show them the right way to do things while you’re driving
- And the more time you guys spend on the road together, the better they’re going to be
That time and advice really make an impact.