Unique considerations influence driving safety for seniors and teens in Maryland. Understanding the risk factors for each demographic can aid awareness and promote driving safety.

1. Driving in Maryland – What You Need
to Know for All Ages (from Teens to
Seniors).
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2. Shared Roads
& A Shared
Responsibility
There are over 32,000 miles of public
roads in Maryland. These are
maintained through our shared taxes
and their safety is a shared
responsibility. WE HAVE A DUTY
TO OTHERS TO DRIVE SAFELY.
• Each year traffic crashes kill more people in
Maryland than homicides. [source]
• Over 90% of total crashes are preventable
incidents caused by driver error.
• Each year in Maryland, over 55,000 people
are injured in vehicle collisions and almost
650 are killed.

3. Key to safe driving is an
understanding and awareness of
the different types of danger.
Different age groups are prone
to different risks. Being aware of
these can help you stay alert while
driving.
What Can I Do?!?
Practice Safe Driving.
Did You Know?
Adults, not teens, are the
biggest texting-while-driving
problem in the U.S. [source]

4. There are 3 fatal traffic accidents
every day involving people over
85 years of age. Only teenagers
have a higher rate of motor
vehicle accidents than seniors.
[source]
Senior Drivers.
Not Good News.
Per capita crash rates begin to
increase at about age 70, according
to the Insurance Institute for
Highway Safety.

5. SAFE DRIVING IN MARYLAND – AT ALL AGES.
Unique Considerations for Seniors
#1 Type of Accident for Seniors? Failure to Yield the Right of Way.
As we age, like it or not, our eyesight begins to deteriorate. This may explain
why 35% of accidents involving drivers 80 and over are caused by a failure to
yield at an intersection (compared with 18% in other age groups).
In addition, older drivers tend to misjudge
whether they have time to proceed.
Baby Boomers are aging, with
10,000 Americans each day
reaching 65 years of age.
10,000

6. SAFE DRIVING IN MARYLAND – AT ALL AGES.
Unique Considerations for Seniors
Your Health - More Than Age - Effects Driving Safety.
Many older adults routinely take medications for a medical condition. Nearly
one-third of Americans ages 57 to 85 take at least five prescription drugs --
people with chronic illnesses may take more than 20. [source]
Maryland has over 600,000
drivers ages 65 and over.
600,000
Many of these medications can have an impact on
driving ability. Likewise, some over-the-counter
medications can cause dizziness, blurred vision, and
inability to concentrate or make good decisions. Even
in its early stages, dementia can cause a driver to get
lost or become confused.

7. SAFE DRIVING IN MARYLAND – AT ALL AGES.
Awareness Can Improve Safety
Being aware of the risk factors unique to senior drivers can help encourage safe
driving and greater mindfulness when on the road.
• Visual impairment may keep a senior from seeing a hazardous situation up
ahead or to the side.
• Motor skills may be affected by arthritis or similar ailments.
• Reaction times are usually slower, and stressful maneuvers like merging or
changing lanes may cause an otherwise confident person to be nervous and
hesitant, creating a danger for others on the road.

8. Teens make fatal mistakes, leading
this age group to have triple the
risk of dying in a car crash as
that of drivers over 20[source]
Teenage Drivers.
Not Good News.
Motor vehicle crashes are the
leading cause of death among
American aged 13-19.

9. SAFE DRIVING IN MARYLAND – AT ALL AGES.
Teen Troubles: You’re Not Invincible
• Crash rates are the highest during a teen's first few months behind the
wheel. [source]
• Between 2007–2011, an average of 15,801 crashes involving young drivers
occurred on Maryland's roadways.
• Motor vehicle injuries cause the death of
7 teens aged 16 to 19 each day.
There are 780,000
teenagers in Maryland;
approx. 14% of our state.
780,000

10. SAFE DRIVING IN MARYLAND – AT ALL AGES.
Awareness Can Improve Safety
Being aware of the risk factors unique to teen drivers can help encourage safe
driving and greater mindfulness when on the road.
• Lack of Age and Driving Experience mean teens have had less practice at safe
driving and fewer learning opportunities to improve.
• More Impetuous and are more likely to speed and tailgate.
• More Distractions including cell phones and other passengers.
• Poor Decisions - teenage drivers and passengers are among those least likely to
wear their seat belts. [source]

11. SAFE DRIVING IN MARYLAND – AT ALL AGES.
Unique Considerations for Teen Drivers
Age & Attitude Effect Driving Safety.
Crashes are not only caused by bad decisions, but the physical condition of
adolescence can have an effect on young people’s behavior behind the wheel.
An average of 9,546 people were
injured annually, due to young-driver
involved crashes, accounting for 20%
of all Maryland's traffic injuries.
20%
In early adolescence, the prefrontal cortex, which
helps with weighing alternatives, calculating risks and
making complex decisions, is still developing. In fact,
the brain continues to mature into the mid-20s.
There is also more dopamine activity in teens, which
can lead to pleasure-seeking activities, such as
speeding. [source]

12. We share the roads, and the
responsibility for driving safely.
Almost 33,000 people died in motor vehicle
accidents in the U.S. in 2013; 465 of those
deaths occurred on Maryland roads.
Another 2.3 million were injured in U.S.
traffic accidents that year.
We ALL Need to Drive Safely.
The Good News.
Fatal vehicle accidents have
been on the decline in recent
years… let’s keep the trend going.

13. Stay
Aware & Safe @ All Ages.
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