Cruise Control: Program encourages parents, teens to work together on safe driving

Teen driver Lexi McClanahan cruises around Cape Girardeau. (Southeast Missourian file photo)

There's a lot for teens to learn when they start driving -- and plenty for their parents to learn, as well.

State laws, safety guidelines and parent-child expectations should all be discussed before letting teens behind the wheel. Cruise Control, a program coordinated by the Cape Girardeau law firm of Cook, Barkett, Ponder & Wolz, aims to improve communication between teens and parents when it comes to driving, resulting in safer driving habits for both parties.

"Parents can make the greatest difference in their teen's driving habits, more than anything else," says Kathy Wolz, the lawyer behind the program's inception.

The issue is close to Wolz's heart: She lost her sister to a drunk-driving accident at age 17. She's also a mother, and driving is something that comes to play in many of her legal cases. In fact, it was while researching statistics for a case that she decided to create a community outreach program for safe driving.

"Seeing young people's lives being ended in ways that could have been prevented -- it's upsetting," she says. "The thing that caught my eye was that just in Missouri, every 43 minutes a teen is killed or seriously injured in a car accident. That is not acceptable. That is not a statistic that anybody should be OK with."

She also notes that, according to the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety, traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for people ages 15 to 20 years old, and 33 percent of Missouri teens don't wear their seat belts -- three of four teens ages 13 to 19 who were killed in traffic accidents in 2011 were not wearing seat belts.

Wolz's law firm has a website for Cruise Control, www.semocruisecontrol.com, and works with local insurance agents, car dealerships and high schools to distribute car accident statistics and reminders about safe driving. One of the key elements is a pledge for teens and their parents to sign, promising not to text while driving, drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or drive aggressively, to name a few. The idea is for both teens and parents to sign the pledge and keep each other accountable for driving safely, says Wolz.

"One of the worst things you can do with kids is tell them one thing and then turn around and do the opposite -- they're watching you. So the cornerstone of this program is to make it a reciprocal promise," she explains.

The Cruise Control website also has tips for parents on helping their teens become better drivers, a link to the Missouri Graduated Driver's License Law and a form to fill out and request a safe driving kit.

"Driving is a privilege, not a right. We need to instill in new drivers that with that privilege comes responsibility," says Wolz. "You might get the eye roll in the beginning, but start the conversation by saying, 'Look, driving is a privilege, not a right that you have. We want you to be safe, and it's so important to us that we'll pledge right along with you. We're accountable to you you're accountable to us.'"

Read more about Cruise Control at www.semocruisecontrol.com and stay updated on the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/semocruisecontrol.