You’ve heard about airbags hurting people and may be thinking about getting on/off switches for the airbags in your car. The federal government now has procedures allowing the very few people who may be at risk of serious airbag injury to get switches, but these aren’t appropriate for most people. Are you possibly at risk of airbag injury? Is someone in your family? It isn’t your size, gender, or age that determines risk. It’s your position in relation to an airbag. Anyone who’s very close to, or on top of, an airbag as it begins to inflate can be injured or killed. Most people who have been harmed by airbags weren’t using safety belts or child restraints, and braking before impact caused them to move close to their airbags before inflation.

Once you understand the risks, weigh them against the benefits of airbags, which are important supplements to safety belts. Airbags and belts work together as a system, and one without the other isn’t as effective. Together, they double the protection against head injury that’s afforded by belts alone. The lives saved by airbags far outnumber the deaths they’ve caused. So are you one of the few who’s possibly at risk? Is your family? Probably not, but check the following guidelines to tell for sure.

On the Driver Side: To avoid serious airbag injury risk, a driver of any size or age should always buckle up and sit at least 10 inches away from the steering wheel. The belted drivers potentially at risk are the very few who are positioned so the center of the chest is closer than 10 inches to the center of the steering wheel.

If you sit closer, try other options before seeking an airbag on/off switch. Why? Because without airbags, even belted drivers move forward in serious frontal crashes, and their faces often hit the steering wheel. Try a new seating position. Some drivers who lean forward need only sit back.

Only if it isn’t possible to get back and away from the steering wheel should you consider an airbag on/off switch — for example, if you’ve tried but cannot comfortably drive while sitting back at least 10 inches. If you’re a woman late in pregnancy who needs to drive and cannot get your abdomen away from the steering wheel, you may wish to seek permission for an on/off switch based on medical need.

But remember that sitting close presents its own risks. Without an airbag, your face is likely to hit the steering wheel in a serious frontal crash.

Most 1998 and later cars have redesigned airbags with less powerful inflators that reduce serious injury risk. In these cars, there’s probably no need to get an on/off switch for your airbag even if you cannot get 10 inches from the steering wheel. Still, it’s best to sit back and away from an airbag.

On the Passenger Side: There’s no significant airbag injury risk to properly belted adults sitting back in the seat. The risk on the passenger side is mostly to infants and children who are unrestrained or unbelted — and the remedy is usually as simple as properly restraining kids in a back seat. Sitting in back always was safer, even before airbags, and now it’s more important because it keeps kids away from inflating airbags.

Never put a rear-facing restraint in front with a passenger airbag. The baby’s head would be too close to the airbag. Instead, secure the infant restraint to the center back seat.

Should you ever consider an on/off switch for a passenger airbag? A switch so you can occasionally put a baby up front might seem like a good idea, but if you’re in a hurry it’s easy to forget about the switch. Besides, it’s always safer to ride in back. So there’s only a rare need for an on/off switch — for example, when an infant with medical problems requires constant observation and the driver is the only other person in the vehicle. Then there might be no choice except to put the baby up front, and a passenger airbag would present a risk. Of course, paying constant attention to a baby distracts from driving and involves its own risks.

What if you transport too many infants or small children to put them all in a back seat? It’s okay for an older child to ride up front, even with a passenger airbag, if the seat is all the way back and the child is secured in a lap/shoulder belt and sitting back in the seat. Sitting back is important because leaning forward to, for example, fiddle with radio dials can put a child’s head close to the airbag. If you routinely transport too many kids to put them all in the back and worry about keeping the child up front sitting back and away from the passenger airbag, you may wish to get an on/off switch. If you do get one, remember to use it correctly. Remember to turn off the airbag when an infant or child must ride in front.

Making the Decision: Don’t discount airbag risks. Don’t discount the benefits of airbags, either. If you’re one of the very few for whom airbags may pose a risk, then an on/off switch may be appropriate. But remember how few people really need on/off switches and how easily they can be misused. And remember this: If you turn off your airbag, you’d be forgoing important protection in the event of a serious frontal crash. When you know the facts, it becomes clear that leaving airbags intact is almost always best.

When their 16-year-old son Gabriel missed his Friday
night curfew, Charles and Maureen Puccia started to fear
the worst. They wouldn’t know for hours that Gabe had
died with two teenage friends in a crash earlier that night.
Gabe’s night started out without much of a plan.He and
some friends were supposed to meet at a pancake house,
but only a few people showed up. That’s when Gabe and
others headed home to watch the playoffs. None had been
drinking, and they had only two miles to drive. But
17-year-old Matt was going about twice the speed limit
when the car veered off the road and hit a tree.

Gabe’s parents had to make several calls just to get the
news.“He had one of those little earrings in his ear, and
a special jacket he had bought in Italy,” Charles recalls.
“And the guy at the hospital said, ‘I think we have your
son.’ Our grief is for Gabe’s loss, not our own — to not
know what we could have done for him and to not watch
him find whatever it was he wanted in life.”

Now the Puccias focus on their younger son, Emilio. “This
is a case where we’re willing to go all the way, enforcing
the graduated licensing law to the utmost and beyond.”

Teenagers perceive a driver’s license as a ticket to freedom.
It’s momentous for parents, too. Though they often are
aware of 16 year-olds’ high crash risks, they’re relieved
not to have to chauffeur their children around anymore. But
the price is steep. Crashes are the leading cause of death
among American teens, accounting for more than onethird
of all deaths of 16 to 18 year-olds.

An effective way to reduce this toll is to enact graduated
licensing, under which driving privileges are phased in to
restrict beginners’ initial experience behind the wheel to
lower risk situations. The restrictions gradually are lifted,
so teenagers are more experienced and mature when they
get their full, unrestricted licenses.

Graduated systems that are well designed restrict night
driving, limit teen passengers, set zero alcohol tolerance,
and require a specified amount of supervised practice
during the initial phase. Graduated licensing laws have
reduced teens’ crash rates in the United States, Canada,
and New Zealand. But not all states have such laws, and
the laws aren’t all strong.

With or without a graduated licensing law, parents can
establish rules based on the graduated model. In particular:

Don’t rely solely on driver education. High school driver
ed may be the most convenient way to learn skills, but it
doesn’t produce safer drivers. Poor skills aren’t always to
blame. Teens’ attitudes and decision-making matter more.
Young people naturally tend to rebel. Teenagers don’t use
safety belts as much, and they deliberately seek thrills like
speeding. Training and education don’t change these
tendencies. Peers are influential, but parents have much
more influence than typically is credited to them.

Know the law. Become familiar with restrictions on young
drivers. Enforce the rules. To learn about the law in your
state, go to www.iihs.org/laws/state_laws/grad_license.html.

Restrict night driving. Most young drivers’ nighttime
fatal crashes occur from 9 p.m. to midnight, so teens
shouldn’t drive much later than 9. The problem isn’t just
that such driving requires more skill. Late outings tend to
be recreational, and even teens who usually follow the rules
can be easily distracted or encouraged to take risks.

Restrict passengers. Teen passengers in a vehicle can
distract a beginning driver and/or lead to greater risktaking.
Because young drivers often transport their friends,
there’s a teen passenger problem as well as a teen driver
problem. About 6 of every 10 teenage passenger deaths
(59 percent) during 2003 occurred in crashes with a teen
driver. While night driving with passengers is particularly
lethal, many fatal crashes with teen passengers occur
during the day. The best policy is to restrict teenage
passengers, especially multiple teens, all the time.

Supervise practice driving. Take an active role in helping
your teenager learn how to drive. Plan a series of
practice sessions in a wide variety of situations, including
night driving. Give beginners time to work up to
challenges like driving in heavy traffic or on the freeway.
Supervised practice should be spread over at least six
months and continue even after a teenager graduates
from a learner’s permit to a restricted or full license.

Remember that you’re a role model. New drivers learn
a lot by example, so practice safe driving.Teens with crashes
and violations often have parents with poor driving records.
Require safety belt use. Don’t assume that belt use when
you’re in the car with your 16 year-old means belts will be
used all the time, especially when your child is out with
peers. Remember that belt use is lower among teenagers
than older people. Insist on belts all the time.

Prohibit driving after drinking. Make it clear that it’s
illegal and highly dangerous for a teenager to drive after
drinking alcohol or using any other drug. While alcohol
isn’t a factor in most fatal crashes of 16-year-old drivers,
even small amounts of alcohol are impairing for teens.

Choose vehicles for safety, not image. Teenagers should
drive vehicles that reduce their chances of a crash and offer
protection in case they do crash. For example, small cars
don’t offer the best protection in a crash. Avoid cars with
performance images that might encourage speeding. Avoid
trucks and sport utility vehicles — the smaller ones,
especially, are more prone to roll over.

“Her name is Emily. She was 16 years old, and lots of
wonderful things were going to happen in her life,” laments
Charrise Hubbard, Emily’s mother. Emily died in a single vehicle
crash less than a year after getting her license.

It was still daylight as Emily was driving herself to a
birthday party at the pool where she was a lifeguard. Just
as she was rounding a curve in the road, she drifted over
the shoulder, overcorrected, struck a culvert, and was
ejected through the passenger window of her truck.

“I would have sworn Emily was too smart not to have her
safety belt on at all times. She was so bright and practical,”
Charrise says. After all, Emily was president of her class.
She belonged to the National Honor Society. She even was
on her school’s newspaper staff and power-lifting team.
“Sometimes,we just assume our kids are doing the things
we’ve worked so hard to teach them.”

Charrise adds that “the thought of Emily’s last few seconds
on this earth often haunts me.Was she afraid? Did she feel
pain? Did she think of all of us who love her so much? The
convenience of having Emily drive and the fun she had
driving were short-lived. If we had known the statistics,
we would have made her go through a step-by-step process
to earn her driving privileges. Anything would be worth
having Emily back with us.”

Teenage drivers have the highest crash risk of any
age group. Per mile traveled, they have the highest
involvement rates in motor vehicle crashes of all types.
The problem is worst among 16 year-olds, who have the
most limited driving experience and an immaturity that
often results in risk-taking behind the wheel.

Driver error: Compared with older drivers’ fatal crashes,
those of 16 year-olds more often involve driver error.

Speeding: Sixteen-year-old drivers have a higher rate
of fatal crashes in which excessive speed is a factor.

Single-vehicle crashes: More of 16 year-olds’ fatal
crashes involve only the teen’s vehicle. Typically these
are high-speed crashes in which the driver lost control.

Passengers: Sixteen year-olds’ fatal crashes are more
likely to occur when other teenagers are in the car. The
risk increases with every additional passenger.

Alcohol: Although this is a problem among drivers of all
ages, it’s actually less of a problem for 16 year-olds. Typically,
fewer than 15 percent of fatally injured 16-year-old drivers
have blood alcohol concentrations of 0.08 percent or more,
but alcohol quickly becomes a problem in later teen years.

Night driving: This is a high-risk activity for beginners.
Per mile driven, the nighttime fatal crash rate for 16 yearolds
is about twice as high as during the day.

Low belt use: Teenagers generally are less likely than
adults to use safety belts.

1) MapQuest Directions
On the Web since 1996, MapQuest is still the standard-bearer in online driving directions and the first site I usually turn to when I need to find my way. Getting driving directions is as simple as entering starting and ending addresses. The directions generated are easy to follow, and I’ve found them to be mostly accurate. MapQuest’s driving time estimates, however, can be a bit generous–you’re likely to arrive faster than indicated. Print your directions, email them or transfer them to a PDA.

2) Google Maps
Google is a relatively new player in the world of online mapping, but wow. The detail and accuracy of Google’s road maps is unparalleled, which is particularly helpful if you’d like to plot a scenic route rather than driving Interstates. The driving directions component still produces some rather convoluted routes at times. But this is Google, so expect improvements. For now, use the maps to help you navigate New England’s twists and turns.

3) Yahoo! Driving Directions
The free driving directions that you can get from Yahoo! are good and, in fact, I often compare the directions I get from both MapQuest and Yahoo! before setting out on a trip. I’m not crazy about the printing layout for Yahoo!’s directions. And, on the whole, I think that MapQuest tends to find the more direct route. It’s not a bad idea, though, to compare options, particularly if your destination is unfamiliar or the route prone to traffic congestion.

4) Rand McNally Online Driving Directions
Rand McNally has a map-making history that dates back to 1856, but the company was a bit slow to the dance and didn’t offer free driving directions online until 1999. If you haven’t tried Rand McNally for directions, you should, particularly if you are planning a long trip with multiple segments. I like the customization possibilities, particularly the ability to track total accumulated distance for each step of a trip. An advanced road trip planning tool allows you to add stops along a route.

5) Windows Live Local Driving Directions
As of August 2006, Windows Live Local is still in Beta, but this driving directions tool has to be better than its precursor, MSN’s Map Blast, which looked like something that was created by a high school kid, not the techie folks in Redmond. It’s nice to have the option to choose the shortest instead of the quickest route in these days of high gas prices. If you do opt for speed, keep in mind that the driving time estimates are awfully ambitious unless you plan to really step on it.

6) AAA Driving Directions
My dad sometimes uses AAA for driving directions, but since I’m not a member, I often forget that AAA offers this service free online for anyone. That’s probably for the best, as AAA is slower than other driving directions sites, and it even hiccups when trying to find my home address as a starting point. The directions generated can be rather convoluted, so while they might get you there, it certainly won’t be via the easiest route. The dense type in the printing layout is almost unreadable.

by Kim Knox Beckius

Learning to drive to Pueblo
by Rich Tosches

There’s a feeling you get when your son begins the process of learning how to drive a car, a feeling that’s indescribable. Although, if I had to take a whack at describing the feeling and put it on some kind of list, I’d say it’s somewhere between watching Linda Blair’s head spin around in The Exorcist and the intestinal pain you experience when you eat a plateful of rancid sea bass.

However, it’s important to note that I’m going into the whole thing with a good attitude.

Nick has driven before. He drove my truck on a gravel road high in the mountains when he was 13, his keen driving skills sending tens of thousands of terrified deer, chipmunks and porcupines stampeding over a cliff to their deaths. And he drove my truck on a friend’s sprawling ranch when he was 14. On that day, Nick came to a narrow spot in the road and had to choose between driving over a little stick that was lying on the right side of the road or plunging off the left side of the road, down a steep ravine and into a pond. His brain gathered the information, quickly processed it in that teen-ager way and then he made his decision. I reacted by screaming, grabbing the steering wheel and swerving the vehicle back onto the road. Over the little stick.

But Nick turned 15 in March and this driving thing has become real. Fortunately, he’s spent most of his life observing the world-class driving skills of motorists here in Colorado Springs. Because he’s been studying us so intently, he’s confident that now he, too, can roar mindlessly through a red light at 60 mph while talking on his cell phone.

Serving number 6

A few weeks ago I enrolled him in a National Driver Training Institute program. He was allowed to take the learner’s permit test that same day and he passed it, somehow correctly answering really tough multiple-choice questions that they put on the test, questions such as:

The speed limit in a school zone when the yellow warning lights are flashing is:

A) 20 mph

B) The Adriatic Sea.

C) Chester the Wonder Horse

D) Who Let The Dogs Out?

E) Coal!

Nick got that one wrong, but according to the woman at the Driver Training Institute, he only got two others incorrect and therefore had passed his learner’s permit exam. Thinking he might be legally allowed to drive my vehicle home that afternoon, I suddenly felt a great sense of pride in this young man as I calmly walked outside and threw my set of car keys onto the roof of the building.

Luckily for me — and the 15 nuns, each of them carrying an orphan that I’m pretty sure Nick would have run over in a crosswalk on our way home — the state of Colorado would not allow him to drive just yet.

First, he had to take his test results to the Department of Motor Vehicles, fill out some more paperwork, have his picture taken and obtain his actual permit. The DMV office was next to the driving school office on Austin Bluffs Parkway, so we walked over and took a number. I didn’t write this down anywhere so I’m not positive, but I believe we had number 894 and the red neon sign on the wall announced that they were currently serving number 6.

In and out in 40 minutes

We joined a huge throng of mothers and fathers sitting with their teen-aged children. The scene could have been a Norman Rockwell painting — you know, if Rockwell had painted angry teen-agers slumped in chairs, impatiently clicking their metal tongue studs against their teeth.

After a few minutes, I asked the guy next to me how long he’d been waiting. He said he’d been there for four hours. I thought he was kidding, so I laughed and jokingly asked, “What kind of an idiot would wait four hours for anything, unless, of course, you were waiting in a line to slap the hell out of Doug Bruce?”

The guy moved to the other side of the room. Turns out he wasn’t kidding.

Our state is experiencing budget problems, as you know. Experts believe that by 2010 Colorado will be so broke it will only be able to hire 4,000 new workers to lean on their shovels at the intersection of Woodmen Road and I-25. Because of these budget problems, our village now has just one DMV office where you can get a driver’s license or learner’s permit. And people are, indeed, forced to wait four and even five hours for their licenses.

So I did the sensible thing. I took my son to Pueblo. In Pueblo, there’s hardly ever a line for anything. The exception comes each September, when State Fair executives set up a carnival booth and invite people to “Step right up and watch us guess how much money the State Fair lost this year!”

Anyway, we were out of the DMV office in Pueblo in 40 minutes. My son had his learner’s permit. And because of a new law that went into effect July 1, he must wait one year before he gets his license. So it looks like I’ll be the passenger in my Chevy Suburban for the next 12 months.

As soon as Nick climbs onto the roof of the Pueblo DMV office and finds the keys.

– richt@csindy.com

STATE KEEPS INCREASING RESTRICTIONS ON YOUNG DRIVERS

By MEGAN ROLLAND THE GAZETTE

To a 16-year-old squirming with excitement, a six-month delay in attaining speed, freedom, a driver’s license, can seem like an eternity.

And restraints that kick in even after the rite of passage has been granted seem beyond unjust.

“We’ve had teenagers who have said, ‘I think the governor is just trying to keep me from dating,’” said Steve Williams, Colorado Springs office manager of National Driver Training, a nonprofit driver education program.

Seven laws enacted in the past two years have complicated the original graduated driver’s license law, passed in 1999, to ensure that minor drivers have experience before obtaining complete driving privileges.

Colorado parents, teens, police, driver education instructors, and even licensing agents aren’t certain anymore who can do what at what age without consulting a complicated chart.

“They change all the time, and I have found that very few people understand them,” said Ken Hughes, manager of American Driving Academy Inc. in Colorado Springs. He agrees with the principle of the 1999 law, but said he is still waiting to see the benefits of the many additions since then.

Automobiles are the leading killer of people under age 25, and police officers who respond to fatal crashes are applauding the legislators’ many restrictions.

“A little bit of confusion to save handfuls of lives every year is worth it,” said John Anderson, program manager for Alive at 25, a Colorado State Patrol driver awareness program.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently released a study that said the most comprehensive graduated driver’s license programs, including Colorado’s, have achieved about a 20 percent reduction in the number of 16-year-old drivers involved in fatal accidents.

The study compiled information from 36 states with graduated licensing programs and seven without. Forty-one states have some type of program.

In Colorado last year, 47 people ages 16 to 20 were killed in wrecks involving teen drivers. In 2004, that number was almost double, with 81 such fatalities, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.

Anderson said he has helped pound the sobering statistics of teenage driving into about 12,000 young drivers’ minds every year.

About half of the people enrolled in Alive at 25 are court-ordered traffic violators; the other half are enrolled to get their instructional permits at age 15½.

Instructional permits are restricted licenses that allow minors to drive only with someone 21 or older.

Minors in Colorado have three options: take a 36-hour driver’s education class and get a permit at age 15, take a much shorter driver awareness program such as Alive at 25 and get a permit at age 15½, or take no class and get a permit at age 16.

“I really didn’t want to waste my summer away,” Kristen Zumback said as she waited this month for a four-hour driver awareness class to begin at National Driver Training, 4432 Austin Bluffs Parkway.

The 15½-year-old planned on heading straight to the Department of Motor Vehicles after the class with proof of completion so she could get her permit.

“I think it’s good so everyone knows how to drive,” she said, referring to the awareness class, but she she said she could do without the curfew and passenger laws — especially because her boyfriend just turned 17.

Before getting their licenses, drivers under age 18 must have their permits for a full year and log 50 hours of driving, including 10 hours of nighttime driving.

Legislation passed this year also mandated attendance in the shorter driver awareness programs for minors convicted of traffic offenses such as reckless driving, drunken driving or causing serious crashes.

Nationwide, 11 out of every 20,000 drivers and passengers under age 24 will be killed in car accidents, he said.

If a teen forgoes driver education, perhaps because of the approximately $300 price tag for a full course and around $30 for an awareness course, he or she must wait until age 16 to get an instructional permit.

“People who have the money to spare are able to get their permits sooner,” Williams said.

LAWS AFFECTING MINOR DRIVERS

Colorado adopted the Graduated Driver’s License law in 1999 because statistics showed minors were involved in fatal accidents at a rate far exceeding that for older drivers. Eight additional bills have been passed since then, tightening restrictions on minor drivers. The following rules apply to those drivers.

GETTING A DRIVER’S LICENSE

Minors under the age of 18 must hold an instructional permit for one year and log 50 hours of daytime driving and 10 hours of nighttime driving with the person who signed the liability affidavit; a person appointed by the signer; or a driver education instructor.

The signer of the liability affidavit takes legal responsibility for a minor’s actions while the minor is driving. Acceptable signers are a parent or stepparent, a grandparent with power of attorney, a guardian or a foster parent.

As of July 1, if the signer does not have a Colorado license, an alternate, who is at least 21 years old and has a valid Colorado license, may be appointed. Also, military personnel with out-of-state licenses are now permitted to monitor permit driving.

At age 16, a minor becomes eligible for an instructional permit, without taking any type of driver education. The earliest age possible to receive a license in this situation is 17.

At age 15½, a minor becomes eligible for an instructional permit if a state-approved driving awareness program is completed, which takes about four hours and doesn’t include behind-the-wheel training. The earliest possible age to receive a license in this situation is 16½.

At age 15, a minor becomes eligible for an instructional permit with proof of enrollment in a 30-hour driver education program, which includes six hours of behind-the-wheel training. The earliest possible age to receive a license in this situation is 16.

RESTRICTIONS ON DRIVING

Minors with instructional permits may drive with anyone who is at least 21 years old and has a valid Colorado driver’s license. The adult must be in the front seat, and the time cannot count toward logged hours unless the signer of the liability affidavit is in the car.

Minors with instructional permits may not use cellular telephones while driving. This is a secondary offense, meaning drivers cannot be pulled over solely for the use of a cell phone.

Drivers under age 18 may have only one person ride in the front seat, and no more passengers in the back seat than there are seat belts.

Drivers under age 18 who have had their licenses for less than six months cannot have passengers under age 21. Minors who have had their licenses for at least six months but less than a year can have one passenger under the age of 21. The following exceptions apply to both rules:

The signer of the liability affidavit is in the vehicle; an adult who has held a valid driver’s license for at least one year is in the car; there is a medical emergency; or a passenger who is under 21 is an immediate family member.

Drivers under age 18 can’t drive from midnight to 5 a.m. unless they have held their licenses for one year. They can drive during those hours if:

- Someone in the car is a signer of the liability affidavit or is at least 21 and has held a valid Colorado license for at least a year.

- The minor is driving to school or a school-authorized activity and the school doesn’t provide transportation. A dated and signed statement from the school official is required.

- The minor is driving because of employment. A signed statement from the employer is required.

- The minor is driving because of an emergency.

- The minor is emancipated, but his or her parents haven’t canceled the minor’s license by withdrawing their liability affidavit.