Young drivers asked to text behind the wheel to show dangers of distracted driving
Young drivers are getting the opportunity to put their skills behind the wheel to the test — but instructors are not making it easy, purposely putting obstacles in their way to educate them on the dangers of distracted and impaired driving.
The Ford Driving Skills for Life program is operated across the U.S. and Canada and aims to reduce the number of auto accidents where young drivers are involved.
This weekend, the course — which requires drivers to navigate through cones, tight turns and signage — has been set up outside the WFCU Centre in Tecumseh, Ont.
According to Canadian program manager Dave Drimmie, while young drivers make up about 13 per cent of Canadian licensed drivers, they are responsible for about 20 per cent of road accidents and fatalities.
"The main reason for that is both inexperience and poor decision-making," says Drimmie. "The program is all about behind-the-wheel, hands-on experience. We run them through closed courses. We always have a professional driving instructor in the right-hand seat that guides them through the courses."
Young drivers are tested through three different exercises.
"Two are the hot-button issues of the day that never seem to go away — that's distracted driving and impaired driving," says Drimmie, adding the third is centred on hazard recognition.
In the distracted driving exercise, participants are asked to perform tasks such as texting while driving, trying to make a call, hearing an extremely loud radio or opening the sunroof.
The goal is to give young drivers a first-hand account of the dangers of distracted driving.
"They run over the cones. They miss some of the signs we have out here on the course. It reinforces that fact that they shouldn't be driving distracted,” Drimmie adds.
Participants of the impaired exercise are asked to wear "fatal vision goggles" which simulates what drivers who have consumed far too much alcohol would see on the road.
The hazard recognition exercises puts drivers in situational awareness exercises, such as ensuring they have an escape lane where they can move if someone cuts in front of them.
Officials say this weekend marks the program's third year in Windsor, Ont. The first two events took place prior to the pandemic.
Registration is open for Sunday's training courses at the WFCU Centre. Anyone interested in participating can visit the Ford Driving Skills for Life website.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.