Home » Santa Clarita News » Events » CHP To Host ‘Older Driver Safety Awareness Week’ To Maintain Safety, Mobility
California Highway Patrol

CHP To Host ‘Older Driver Safety Awareness Week’ To Maintain Safety, Mobility

This holiday season, California Highway Patrol officers are supporting the independence of Santa Clarita Valley’s most experienced drivers while maintaining safety on the highways.


Sponsored Articles


Don’t miss a thing. Get breaking Santa Clarita news alerts delivered right to your inbox.

As part of the CHP’s mission of providing the highest level of safety, service and security to people throughout the state, the CHP aims to maintain and improve traffic safety and mobility for California’s senior drivers.

Thus, the CHP joins with the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) in recognizing Dec. 1-5, 2014, as Older Driver Safety Awareness Week.

Each year the older driver traffic safety campaign promotes the importance and value of mobility and transportation to ensure older adults remain active in their community by maintaining their access to transportation options.

CHP officers want no barrier to come between seniors and their communities and loved ones, especially during the holiday season, according to the news release. 

“This is a perfect opportunity to discuss with family and friends the topic of older drivers being safe behind the wheel while continuing to be active members of our communities,” said CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow. “With the holiday travel season upon us, this traffic safety campaign will help enhance safety for everyone by addressing the mobility needs of California’s older drivers.”

According to the CHP’s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), in 2012 there were more than 111,000 drivers over 65 years of age involved in a collision. Among those senior drivers involved in a collision, more than 560 were killed and nearly 36,000 suffered injuries. Senior drivers were found to be at fault in 66 percent of those collisions.

To help California’s seniors maintain their driving independence for as long as they can safely drive, the CHP offers a two-hour “Age Well, Drive Smart” course.

The program is supported by the Keeping Everyone Safe grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety.

Through this program, seniors can tune up their driving skills, refresh their knowledge of the rules of the road, and learn about normal age-related physical and mental changes and how to adjust to them.

To find out when the next Age Well, Drive Smart course is being offered, call your local CHP office or visit us online.

Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.

KHTS AM 1220 - Santa Clarita Radio - Santa Clarita News

CHP To Host ‘Older Driver Safety Awareness Week’ To Maintain Safety, Mobility

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

About Jessica Boyer

Jessica is an award-winning journalist, photographer, videographer and artist. She has worked with news organizations including NBC Los Angeles, KHTS AM 1220, and the Pierce College Roundup News. She is studying to receive a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism with an emphasis on Photojournalism and a minor in Communications at California State University, Northridge. She has studied and worked in many fields including filmmaking, journalism, studio photography, and some graphic design. She began her journalism journey at the Arroyo Seco Conquestador News Network and the Saugus High School News Network.