Buckle up

WHAT DRIVES YOU TO BUCKLE UP, EVERY SEAT, EVERY TRIP?

Unbuckled people account for nearly half of our state’s highway fatalities. That's a startling statistic considering research that shows the vast majority of front-seat passengers in Iowa buckle up. What drives you to buckle up?

• Buckling up keeps you secure in your seat and inside your vehicle. If you aren’t buckled in a crash you can be thrown around your vehicle causing additional injuries or even totally tossed from the vehicle in a crash, which is almost always deadly.
• Airbags alone aren’t enough to protect you; in fact, the force of an airbag can seriously injure or even kill you if you’re not buckled up.
• Improperly wearing a seat belt, such as putting the strap below your arm, puts you in danger. If you were to crash, the seat belt wouldn’t do it’s job and you may be moved around the vehicle where you could lose control.
• Correctly buckling a child into a child safety seat can reduce the risk of that child’s death by as much as 71 percent.

Slow down and drive chill

DOES YOUR DESIRE TO BE ON TIME DRIVE YOU? DON’T LET SPEEDING OR AGGRESSIVE DRIVING COST YOU YOUR LIFE.

Imagine this: You’re 10 minutes late for work and decide to drive a little over the speed limit to make up some time. You’re minutes from work when you see a signal light up ahead of you turn yellow. You’re already late and so you step on the gas. You really weren’t close enough to make it, but there’s no time to spare. Your heart begins to race as you fly through the intersection just after the light turns red.

This is just one example that happens every day. Sometimes there is no crash and everyone goes about their business like nothing ever happened.

SOMETIMES THAT RED LIGHT IS THE LAST THING A PERSON EVER SEES.

Recognizing the behavior is the first step to changing it. Here are some other tips:

1. Try to avoid driving when you’re upset.
2. Listen to soothing music.
3. Plan ahead to avoid the need to hurry.
4. Don’t take the actions of other drivers personally.

Drive sober

IT’S JUST A FEW DRINKS. I’M OK TO DRIVE, RIGHT?

If you have to ask yourself if you’re OK to drive, you’re not OK to drive. Is it a false sense of security that drives you to get behind the wheel after a few drinks?

• Buzzed driving is impaired driving.
• Every day, almost 32 people in the United States die in alcohol-impaired vehicle crashes - that’s one person every 45 minutes.
• According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 11,654 people died in alcohol-impaired driving traffic deaths in 2020 - a 14% increase from 2019, even though drunk-driving fatalities have fallen by a third in the last three decades. These deaths were all preventable.

Pay attention

THERE ARE SO MANY DISTRACTIONS IN OUR LIVES, BUT EVEN MORE REASONS TO ARRIVE SAFELY. WHAT CAN YOU DO TO MAKE IT HOME TO WHAT DRIVES YOU?

• Put your phone away.
• If it doesn’t involve the act of driving, do it later. Whether that’s eating, applying make-up, or something else, it can wait.
• Even seemingly simple tasks like switching your radio or attending to passengers can be a distraction. Try to do these things while you are stopped.
• Only drive when you’re able to give the road your full attention.

Whatever drives you to take your eyes, hands, and mind off safely driving your vehicle puts you, and those you’re sharing the road with, in danger. Instead of focusing on distractions that can harm you and others, focus on the things that drive you to get home safely.