|
 Security
Measures: Staying
Safe On the Road
No
one wants to face
mortality but we accept
that certain lifestyle
choices will have an
impact on one’s lifespan.
Certainly diseases can
be fatal, but another
killer and one of the
most avoidable, takes
more lives than many
diseases annually—car
accidents.
According to a 2007
report from the National
Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA),
“The Facts: To Buckle Up
America,” car accidents
account for the leading
cause of death among
Latinos, ages 3–34, and
are the sixth leading
cause of death among
Latinos/as of all ages.
From preventive to
practical measures, we
offer the following tips
on basic car safety for
your consideration.
Buckle-Up
This preventive measure
should trigger the
universal obvious common
sense from most readers
but unfortunately, too
many still overlook this
basic safety feature.
According to NHTSA’s
report, which looked at
traffic accident
statistics between 1990
and 2003, safety belts
saved more than 13,000
lives in 2001 but in the
same year, two-thirds of
passengers killed in
traffic accidents were
unrestrained. When used
properly, lap/shoulder
belts reduce the risk of
fatal injury to front-seat
passengers by 45 percent
and the risk of moderate
to critical injury by 50
percent.
According to
observational research (NOPU,
2006) nearly one in five
U.S. Motorists still do
not wear their belts,
clearly seat belt use
saves lives and prevent
injuries, so BUCKLE-UP.
Don’t Drink and Drive
According to NHTSA, in
2006, alcohol related
car accidents killed
someone every 31
minutes, and injured
someone every two
minutes in the U.S.
Deaths related to
alcohol continue to
decrease, they account
for 40 percent of
traffic deaths in 2002
as apposed to 70 percent
in 1970, according to
the National Institutes
of Health (NIH) Fact
Sheet, but younger
drivers continue to be a
source of concern.
According to NIH, young
people who start
drinking at age 15 or
sooner are seven times
more likely to be
involved in an alcohol
related traffic accident.
“Race and Ethnicity in
Fatal Moor Vehicle
Traffic Crashes,
1999–2004,” a report
compiled by NHTSA’s
National Center for
Statistics and Analysis
(NCSA), reports that 47
percent of fatally
injured Latino drivers
had been drinking and
that the trend “appeared
independent of such
socio economic
influences as education
levels or proportion of
female-to-male drivers
in the population of
drivers killed.”
No More Multi-tasking
Traffic accidents due to
alcohol increase because
alcohol impairs
alertness. But other
factors, like lack of
sleep or distraction
from multi-tasking while
at the wheel, from
programming radio
stations to talking on a
cell phone or even text
messaging while driving,
also take their toll.
Many carmakers have
adopted hands free
cellular phone
technology, like
Bluetooth. OnStar, the
onboard safety and
information technology
developed by General
Motors, not only allows
for hands-free
communicating, it allows
the driver to talk with
an actual individual, to
ask directions as well
as report an emergency.
Keep Children Safe
Like seat belts, car
seats can dramatically
reduce the risk of
injury or death to
children, but only if
they’re used and
installed correctly.
The NSCA found that more
than half of Latino
children under the age
of five years do not
travel in car safety
seats. Many manufactures
now include the Lower
Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH) system
for easier car seat
installation. NHTSA
recently launched a car-safety
seat ratings system,
based on quality and
ease of installation,
for parents shopping for
the proper car safety
seat. To confirm proper
installation, parents
can search the site,
http://www.nhtsa.gov,
to find a car seat
technician in their area.
According to the NHTSA
2007 National
Communications Plan, car
crashers are the leading
cause of death for
children of every age
from 3 to 14.
For child passenger
safety, parents and
caregivers need to
always follow the 4
steps for kids:
-
Use rear facing
infant seats on the
back seat from birth
to at least 1 year
of age and until
they weigh at least
20 pounds.
-
Use forward-facing
toddler seats in the
back seat from age 1
and 20 pounds to
about age 4 and 40
pounds.
-
Use booster seats in
the back seat from
about age 4 to at
least age 8 – or
until the child is
4’9” tall.
-
Use seat belts at
age 8 and older or
taller than 4’9”.
All children age 12
and under should
ride in the back
seat.
Regular Vehicle
Maintenance
-
Preventive measures
like regular vehicle
maintenance can also
reduce the chances
of encountering car
or mechanical
failures at
inopportune moments.
-
Basic car
maintenance begins
with sticking to oil
changes per the
owner’s manual
specifications,
usually between
3,000–3,500 miles.
-
With 100,000-mile-lifespan
spark plugs (check
the owner’s manual
to make sure your
car them), tune-ups
are practically
obsolete, but air
and fuel filters
still need replacing,
and a check of fluid
levels couldn’t hurt.
-
Tires, however do
need regular
maintenance, they
should be rotated,
at least every six
months, and properly
inflated.
-
Keep a tire gauge in
the glove
compartment and if a
tire is low, new
cars will have a
tire pressure
monitor to alert the
owner, look at the
sticker inside the
driver’s side door
panel for proper
inflammation levels.
-
Some manufacturers
now include 24-hour
roadside assistance
as part of the
vehicle warranty for
added peace of mind.
Because the best defense
is a good offense be
sure to keep a:
By Valerie Menard
|
