THE INSTRUCTOR - Maine Driver and Traffic Safety Education

M AINE D RIVER & T RAFFIC S AFETY E DUCATION A SSOCIATION
T HE I NSTRUCTOR
V OLUME 5, I SSUE 2
J UNE 15, 2 O 15
New Leadership Team will
Lead MEDTSEA Forward
Mike Gorham of Temple
Driving Academy Board
Member
Those who cannot change
their
minds
cannot
change
anything.”
― George Bernard Shaw
MEDTSEA is pleased to announce a complete reshuffling
of our board and introduce
our new leadership team after
our annual business meeting
in May at our spring conference. We wish to thank those
who have served and moved
on and we look forward to a
new leadership team with
fresh insights moving forward.
Our newly elected president
is Anthony
Vine
of
IndieDriver Education Services
in
Falmouth,
Maine.
And our new vice president is
Michael Hancher with The
Driving School in Windham,
Maine.
S PECIAL POINTS OF INTEREST :
NETSEA C ONFERENCE
O CTOBER 15, 16, 17,
2015
Our other new officer is
Executive Secretary Randy
Greason of Vacationland
Driving
Academy.
New board members include...
Ben Mullen, of The Driving
School
Board
Member
D OUBLE T REE BY H ILTON
Betty Vigue-Perkins of Matthieu’s Driving School
Board Member and a founding member of MEDTSEA
And Daniel Dingley of The
Dr iving
School
Board
Member
S OUTH P ORTLAND , ME
I NSIDE
THIS ISSUE :
O REGON D RIVER E DUCATION F OUND TO R EDUCE
C RASHES AND C ITATIONS
2
T EEN D RIVERS P UT E VERYONE AT R ISK AS 100 D EADLIEST D AYS B EGINS
3
127 TH M AINE L EGISLATIVE 4
S ESSION
N EWLY E LECTED P RESIDENT 5
M AINE I MPAIRED D RIVING 6
S UMMIT A PRIL 30 2015
F REDERIC C HARLES H IRSCH 8
B ACK TO B ASICS
9
T HE I NSTRUCTOR
P AGE 2
Oregon Driver Education Found to Reduce Crashes and
Citations!
By now, you may have heard
that a recent study found that
teens who take driver education in Oregon have both
fewer collisions and fewer
citations- and this is great
news! The study, conducted
by the AAA Foundation for
Traffic Safety, is the largest
study of driver education every conducted in the U.S.
gram is unique, the study’s
results cannot be generalized
to necessarily reflect the impact of driver education
across the entire nation, butthe safety community should
be encouraged by the findings.
But right now, take a minute
to recognize and acknowledge
your contributions to helping
The study compared almost enhance teen driving safe95,000 teens who either did ty. Pat yourself on the backor did not take driver educa- you’ve earned it!
tion. Their driving records
Key Findings – Student Outwere examined to determine
comes & Performance
whether each driver had been
involved in a collision or had In Manitoba: DE associated
been convicted of a traffic with slightly greater safe drivviolation. The results were ing knowledge, greater selfpositive- teens who took driv- reported skills, fewer selfer education were involved in reported risk-taking behavfewer collisions and had few- iors, better performance on a
simulated drive test, and
er traffic convictions.
stronger hazard anticipation.
Because like every state, Oregon’s driver education pro- DE teens still failed to identi-
fy many hazards. In
Oregon: DE associated with increases
in knowledge about
graduated driver
licensing (GDL)
and safe driving
practices, greater
self-reported skills,
and more driving
e x p o s u r e .
Knowledge levels
among DE teens
still relatively low,
however. In both
Manitoba and Oregon, no significant
difference in road
test pass rates between DE and nonDE teens was observed; however, in Manitoba, DE group
had better scores among those
passing and failing the test.
Key Findings – Baseline Differences
In Manitoba, DE group was
younger, more supportive of
GDL, more accepting of risk,
and less tolerant of deviant
behavior as compared with
non-DE.
In Oregon, DE group was
younger, more likely male,
less likely Hispanic/Latino,
more likely to reside in an
urban setting, more supportive of GDL features, and reported less driving skills and
driving at the outset.
Conclusions & Discussion
Overall, findings from Manitoba and Oregon suggest positive but modest effects of DE.
Although some evidence
points to increased safe driving knowledge of DE teens,
the fact that this knowledge is
still relatively low after DE
suggests room for course and
instructional improvements.
Self-rated driving skills are
significantly higher for DE
teens, but more research is
needed to determine whether
this is a boon for safety, or a
detriment (e.g., if it reflects
confidence unmet by ability).
Findings should help promote
states’ adoption of the
NHTSA-funded Novice Teen
Driver Education and Training Administrative Standards,
developed and supported by a
broad coalition of safety
stakeholders. Designed to
improve the scope, quality,
consistency, and oversight of
DE, the Standards promote,
among other things, integration of DE into GDL, monitoring and evaluation of programs and providers, instructor certification, and a mandatory orientation session for
parents covering key teen
driving issues.
So, the next time you come
across a legislator, parent or
other person who is asking
“Does driver education produce safer drivers?,” direct
them to https://
www.aaafoundation.org/
evaluation-beginner-drivereducation-programs-studiesmanitoba-and-oregon, where
the full report and a two-page
Fact Sheet are available. In
fact, we invite you to personally review the report’s findings- the Fact Sheet makes for
V OLUME 4, I SSUE 4
Nearly two-thirds of people
injured or killed in a crash
involving a teen driver are
people other than the teen
behind the wheel, according
to a new report released by
the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. In 2013 alone,
371,645 people were injured
and 2,927 were killed in
crashes that involved a teen
driver. The results come just
as the “100 Deadliest Days”
begin, the period between
Memorial Day and Labor Day
when teen crash fatalities historically climb.
“Teen crash rates are higher
than any other age group, and
this data confirms that the
impact of their crashes extend
well beyond the teen who is
behind the wheel,” said Pat
Moody manager of public
affairs for AAA Northern
New England. “AAA urges
parents to increase their focus
on safety during the schoolfree, high-risk summer
months when teens drive
more and often have less supervision. Since teens drive
more during the summer than
P AGE 3
any other season, this insight
is a timely reminder to everyone—drivers, pedestrians and
bicyclists— to be mindful
when sharing the roads with
young drivers.”
2013, an average of 220 teen
drivers and passengers died in
traffic crashes during each of
the summer months, a 43
percent increase compared to
the rest of the year.
The study analyzed data of
police-reported crashes of
drivers aged 15-19, from
1994-2013 and found that:
AAA has been a decades-long
advocate on behalf of teen
drivers and their families and
has been a leader at the state Patrick Moody of AAA NNE
Portland, Maine Office.
level in advocating for the
implementation and improvement of both graduated driv“W HILE THE
ers licensing (GDL) laws and
OVERALL NUMBER
OF TEEN CRASHES
quality driver education proARE DOWN , THE
grams. Additional data from
MAJORITY OF
PEOPLE KILLED
this study point to the drop in
(66% ) AND
overall crash rates for teen
INJURED (67%) IN
drivers that can be attributed
CRASHES INVOLVING
A TEEN DRIVER ARE
to strong GDL legislation as
PEOPLE OTHER
well as other factors including
THAN THE TEEN
falling gas prices and the
THEMSELVES ”
economy.
While the overall number of
teen crashes are down, the
majority of people killed
(66%) and injured (67%) in
crashes involving a teen driver
are people other than the teen
themselves.
Nearly 50 percent of those
injured were in another vehicle; 17 percent were in the
teen driver’s car; and 2 percent were non-motorists
(i.e., pedestrian, bicyclist).
Nearly 30 percent of those
killed were in another car, 27
percent were the teen’s passenger and ten percent were
non-motorists (i.e., pedestrians, bicyclist).
AAA is promoting the study
findings to raise attention
among parents of teen drivers
and all road users particularly
during the “100 Deadliest
Days” period. Based on a
AAA analysis of the government’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), in
In the last 20 years, non-fatal
injury crashes and fatal crashes of teen drivers aged 15-19
decreased by 51 percent and
56 percent respectively. In
comparison, crashes resulting
in non-fatal injuries and fatalities, including but not limited
to those involving teen drivers fell by 25 percent and 17
percent respectively.
ing cause of death for drivers
aged 15-19, so advocating on
behalf of teen driver safety
remains a top priority for
AAA,” said Moody.
Tools to help parents prepare
for the “100 Deadliest Days”
of summer driving and other
resources to coach teens
through the learning-to drive
process can be found on
“While great strides have TeenDriving.AAA.com.
been made to improve the
Pat Moody
safety of teen drivers over the
past 20 years, motor vehicle AAA NNE
crashes still remain the lead-
T HE I NSTRUCTOR
P AGE 4
The First Regular Session of
the 127th Maine Legislature
convened on December 3,
2014 and is quickly trying to
conclude their business.
There were several bills of
interest to driver education
during this session and here is
a wrap up of this session.
LD 529 An Act To Amend
the Law Concerning Motor Vehicles at Railroad
Crossings:
“A T
HIS BEST ,
MAN IS THE
NOBLEST OF ALL
ANIM ALS ;
SEPARATED FROM
LAW AN D JUSTICE
HE IS THE WORST .
A RISTOTLE ”
This bill was brought forward
by MEDTSEA and sponsored
by Senator Diamond of
Windham. The bill has passed
and will change the law regarding the stopping distance
from a railroad crossing from
10 feet to 15 feet to coincide
with federal guidelines. It also
clarifies an operator’s responsibilities when approaching a
grade crossing.
LD 288 An Act To Amend
the Requirement of
When Headlights Must
Be Used:
This bill was brought forward
by MEDTSEA and sponsored
by Senator Diamond of
Windham. The bill changes
when lights must be on.
When the law goes into effect
this fall motorist will now
have to use their headlights
from sunset to sunrise. This
will improve visibility to other vehicles during the twilight
periods.
LD 363 An Act Regarding
Learner's Permits for
Driver's Licenses:
This bill was brought forth by
the Maine Driver Education
Association and would have
undone LD 1911 returning
the collection of identification
papers, fees, and forms by
driver education providers as
well as return issuing learners
permits by driver education
schools. This bill was killed
by the transportation committee with a unanimous
aught not to pass vote.
LD 682 An Act To Ensure
the Administration of
Written Driving Tests:
This bill was brought forward
by MEDTSEA and sponsored
by Representative Gillway.
The bill as presented would
have again for the third time
mandated that the SOS take
over the permit testing as
stipulated in Title 29-A.
Whether you agree or disagree with the SOS issuing the
written exam one thing
should concern every citizen.
And that is that neither the
SOS nor any other government executive officer should
be able to ignore and or violate Maine law. The position
of the SOS was that a rule he
created could override Title
29-A law which even the legal
analyst on the transportation
committee had a problem
with. But we could see the
will of the committee this
year was not there to tell the
SOS for the third time to
follow the law. MEDTSEA
submitted a proposed amendment to the bill which basically says that upon the presentation of a course completion
certificate from a driver edu-
cation school the SOS may
waive the written exam. The
committee accepted our
amendment and voted ought
to pass unanimously. The bill
cleared both houses but the
governor then vetoed the bill.
The governor had wished to
see the SOS follow the law as
written but the legislature
overrode the governor’s veto
and it will go into effect this
fall making it legal for what is
currently being done.
LD 737 An Act To Amend
the Laws Regarding
Learner's Permits and
Intermediate Licenses:
This bill was gutted during
the committee process but
was not killed. It was stripped
of all the great GDL improvements which were supported
by AAA and MEDTSEA. The
bill was known as Taylor’s
Law for the stickers which
would have been mandated
on all intermediate driver
vehicles. The main objection
to the decals was the fear of a
pedophile using them to select a victim. This was totally
unfounded as proven by a
study in New Jersey which
found that there was no truth
to this objection. The bill was
opposed by the Department
of Public Safety, the Governor, the SOS, and MEDEA.
The legislature did pass LD
737 as a voluntary measure
only for the decals whci was
vetoed by the Governor and
overridden by the legislature
and will go into effect this fall
as a voluntary law only.
MEDTSEA
V OLUME 4, I SSUE 4
Four years ago I was recruited
to join MEDTSEA and run for
the board. I will admit to you
that I was new to this profession, very new. So new I
thought running meant more
than agreeing to have your
name placed on a ballot.
Why did I join and agree to
be on the Board? Someone
has to REPRESENT the
members of this profession,
these students and the integrity of process. In the past four
years MEDTSEA has done
some good work and taken
some heat for it. Leadership
is acting as to benefit the
group. If no one is willing to
lead then anyone can lead all
they need do is say, “Let’s go
this direction”. It was exciting
this year to see non members
of MEDTSEA come together
and voice a different opinion.
I think they’ve had the opinion but haven’t really stood
up and spoke in an audible
voice. This year the transportation committee of the
Maine State Legislature was
able to hear two opinions on
how Drivers Education
should be conducted in
Maine. Are we both striving
for the same goal of improving Drivers Education and
motorist safety? If so then
they have twice the number
of ideas to choose from and
that is a great thing. It is my
hope that MEDEA and
MEDTSEA will find the common ground that will help get
Maine to the forefront of
P AGE 5
Drivers Education.
what’s next?
How can MEDTSEA do this?
How can we take our place at
the national table?
MEDTSEA has always been
proactive but only as it affects
Maine. We need to think on a
bigger scale. Produce materials that will benefit all Driving
Educators, Develop curriculum that will drive us into the
21st century. Autonomous
cars are on the horizon but
they are still a ways off, what
sort of training will there be
in the future?
I believe it is the Mission of
MEDTSEA to represent, advocate, enhance, Develop,
and promote Drivers Education & traffic safety (in
Maine.)
Are we achieving this goal?
We ADVOCATED for legislation in hopes of improving
Drivers Education; keeping
motorists safer around railroad tracks; and improving
driver visibility.
What sort of drivers will be
We ENHANCE Drivers Edu- called for?
cation through presenting
thoughtful and meaningful
conferences. We work to
bring new speakers, new approaches and ideas.
We have assisted in DEVELOPING, the basis for rules
and regulations for Drivers
Education through interactions with Former Secretary
of State Charlie Summers in
response to online Drivers
Education in Maine.
Europe is 80% standard transmissions while America is
80% automatic transmissions.
Are American drivers lazier,
less willing to be part of the
drive itself?
How do we get these new
drivers to want to be part of
the experience instead of
chauffeured?
A positive national reputation
will attract new blood and
new ideas. We must make
We have PROMOTED great- our profession attractive to
er participation in profession- new teachers.
al organizations if for no other
I am making it the
reason than in response to
2015/2016 goal of
legislation MEDTSEA helped
MEDTSEA to build our
put into law. I believe in comembership. It is my dream
operative associations. Active
to get 100% participation by
Participation advocating for
Maine's driving educators in a
rules that affect us all is someprofessional association. Be a
thing our profession sorely
Republican, be a Democrat,
lacks.
heck be independent or undeSo those goals all on going… clared but be involved.
MEDTSEA President
Anthony Vine
“I T
IS MY HOPE
MEDEA
MEDTSEA
THAT
AND
WILL FIN D THE
COMMON GROUN D
THAT WILL HELP
GET
M AINE
TO
THE FOREFRONT
OF D RIVERS
E DUCATION . ”
T HE I NSTRUCTOR
P AGE 6
Eye Movement Accuracy Involves
Many Parts In the Brain !
Visual–spatial
attention and
eye movement
planning
High-level and
attention processing
of complex visual
stimuli
Sees the Target
Eye Muscle
Control
Centers
Neural
Integrator and
Cerebellum
controls
smooth speed
and movement
HGN and Eye Movement Accuracy
Involves Many Parts In the Brain !
“Colonel Robert A.
Williams Chief of the
Maine State Police told
the attendees that it
was not a matter of if
Maine would legalize
marijuana but when.”
On April 30, 2015 AAA
Northern New England in
conjunction with the Bureau
of Highway Safety held an
Impaired Driving Summit in
Augusta, Maine. The summit
was attended by Bob Mullen
and Carl Joy of MEDTSEA.
The all day program was to
educate law enforcement and
traffic safety personnel and
the judicial officers of rising
concerns and strategies to
deal with a new and growing
problem in our state: drugged
driving. Colonel Robert A.
Williams Chief of the Maine
State Police told the attendees
that it was not a matter of if
Maine would legalize marijuana but when. And on this
premise the summit sought to
educate and enlighten those
present with the hazards of
drugged driving and the problems which the state faced in
writing laws to combat this
menace to our society.
Cannabis
• Most popular recreational drug in the US
after alcohol and tobacco.
• #1 Drug in the DUI Drug Arrests and 6.8%
of Friday and Saturday evening drivers test
positive for use.
• Some 25 million Americans have smoked
marijuana in the past year, and more than
14 million do so regularly.
• Possession and use illegal under federal
law, but states have variable policies on
enforcement and prosecution.
Cannabis and the Brain
Basal Ganglia
Cerebral Cortex
Movement
Higher cognitive function
Cerebellum
Movement
Hypothalamus
Appetite
Hippocampus
Medulla
Nausea/vomiting, CTZ
Creative Commons
Presentations included:
Impact of Changing Marijuana Laws on Impaired Driving
Barry K Logan PhD, DABFT,
The Truth is in The Eyes !
Dr. Jack E. Richman Police
Physician DRE Instructor
#12479 Hingham Police
Dept. Hingham,
DWI Courts SAVE LIVES
and Taxpayer Dollars Too
Judge J. Michael Kavanaugh,
(Ret.) Senior Director NCDC
National Perspective on
Drugs & Traffic Safety Jake
Nelson MPH, MPP
NHTSA Research on
Impaired Driving Amy
Berning Research Psychologist
Forensic Toxicology: Another
Piece of the Puzzle Heather
Dyer and Steve Pierce
Learning. Memory, stress
Spinal cord
Peripheral sensation/pain
Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor Scot Mattox, Esq.
Maine Bureau of Highway
Safety
Drugged Driving: A Problem
for Everyone Joanne E.
Thomka Director, National
Traffic Law Center National
District Attorneys Association
Alexandria, VA.
It was an incredible assembly
of knowledgeable professionals who shared their vast
knowledge base and insight
into the problems that confront our state in the months
and years ahead with the
changing views on recreational drug use in our culture.
We wish to thank AAA
Northern New England and
Daniel
Goodman
Traffic Safety Specialist for
AAA NNE for inviting us and
the great training offered!
Carl Joy MEDTSEA
V OLUME 4, I SSUE 4
Hollywood Slots Conference Center in Bangor was
the site May 1 of MEDTSEA’s
annual conference.
The day began with
presentation of the colors by
the Bangor Fire Department
Color Guard, followed by
opening remarks by out-going
MEDTSEA President Carl
Joy.
Recognition awards
were presented to state examiner James Foster, retired
driving instructor and former
MEDTSEA Vice-President
Carleton Sanborn, and Carl
Joy upon his leaving the
MEDTSEA board.
Examiners Foster and John
Fox offered the day’s first
installment, a well-received
look at the training process
for road test examiners and
an overview of the standards
for a typical road test.
Attorney Scott Maddux,
Maine’s first traffic safety
prosecutor, described his new
role and explained how he
could be a resource for the
driver education community.
Maine State Trooper Chris
Cookson spoke of the role of
law enforcement in promoting traffic safety, and offered
numerous real-life examples
to illustrate.
Paul Maravelias of New
Hampshire presented a highly
P AGE 7
-technical look at “Advanced
Highway Driving: Tactics for
Safety and Optimization.”
Unanticipated but much
appreciated was the appearance of Rep. Archie Verow
(D-Brewer), a member of the
Joint Transportation Committee, who briefly addressed
the gathering to offer his support for driver education,
especially as a voice in Augusta.
The business meeting resulted in the election of Tony
Vine as MEDTSEA President,
Randy Greason as Secretary,
and Ben Mullen as a new
board member.
Maine humorist Tim Sample provided an after lunch
break from the work of the
day with his wry observations, including some on driving. He concluded with the
classic Bert and I tale of lobstering with mother-in-law.
The day concluded with
the distribution of auction
items and door prizes provided by numerous generous
sponsors, featuring Mike
“Santa” Hancher and his bottomless goodie bag.
Sadly the conference
turned out to be one of the
final public appearances of
Fred Hirsch, state volunteer
coordinator for Operation
Rep. Archie Verow (D-Brewer)
Lifesaver, and a regular vendor at the conference. Fred,
who organized many rail safety presentations at Maine
driving schools, passed away
unexpectedly June 11. He
will be missed by all at
MEDTSEA.
MEDTSEA’s 2016 conference
is already being planned. Do
you have a suggestion as to
what you would like to see at
next year’s conference?
Please let us know your
thoughts on how best we can
help meet your training
needs.
Randy Greason
“M AINE HUMORIST
T IM S AMPLE
PROVIDED AN
AFTER LUNCH
BREAK FROM THE
WORK OF THE DAY
WITH HIS WRY
OBSERVATIONS ,
INCLUDING SOME
ON DRIVING .
”
T HE I NSTRUCTOR
P AGE 8
BANGOR - Frederic Charles
Hirsch, 62, passed away unexpectedly on Thursday, June
11, 2015 in Bangor. He was
born on February 13, 1953 in
New York City, the son of
the late Martin H. Hirsch,
and Ingrid M. Hirsch of Redd i n g ,
C T .
“I T
IS A LIFE SUCH
AS HIS ONE OF
SELF SACRIFICE
AND DE DIC ATION
TO A CAUSE TH AT
WILL ENABLE THE
LIFE HE LIVED TO
BE LIVED ON IN
THE LIVES OF
OTHERS FOR M ANY
YEARS TO COME !”
Fred grew up in East Arlington, VT and graduated from
Tilton School in Tilton, NH.
After graduating from Ithaca
College in Ithaca, NY, with a
degree in Communications/
Radio Broadcasting, Fred
began his broadcasting career
in New York City, working
for NBC radio. After several
years managing a radio station
in New Rochelle, NY, Fred
moved to Dover-Foxcroft,
ME as owner/manager of
W D M E
r a d i o .
Fred was a quadriplegic for
28 years, but it never slowed
him down. At the time of his
death, he was a substitute
teacher and tutor for the Bangor Public School System. He
also served in the past as a
volunteer consultant for the
New England School of Communications, and worked at
Eastern Maine Healthcare as a
Telecare volunteer.
Fred's first and foremost passion was the railroad. At a
very young age, he delighted
in trains, and one of his first
summer jobs was working on
a rail crew. In his free time,
he could be found "chasing"
trains with his railroad buddies. In fact, his radio station
was housed in a renovated
railroad car. Fred also volunteered as the State of Maine
Coordinator for Operation
Lifesaver, a national organization devoted to safety on and
around railroad tracks.
In addition to his mother,
Fred is survived by his loving
wife, Julie Deyone Hirsch, his
s te p- da u g ht er M ela n i e
McGrath and her husband
Dennis, and a cherished stepgranddaughter, Caitlin. Fred
is also survived by his brother
and sister-in-law Peter and
Susan Hirsch of York, ME,
and his sister and brother-inlaw Katharine and Reto
Koller of New Canaan, CT.
Nieces and nephews Selina,
Neal and Julia Koller and
Conall and Meghan Hirsch
also survive him.
Frederic was a devoted member of the Congregation Beth
Israel in Bangor. A Memorial
service will be held 12 noon
Sunday June 14, 2015 at
Brookings-Smith, 133 Center
St., Bangor. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to
Congregation Beth Israel, 144
York St., Bangor, or Operation Lifesaver at www.oli.org
MEDTSEA fondly remembers
the dedication and commitment of Fred to the Railroad
safety message always looking
for an opportunity to educate
and train whether it be our
newest drivers or those who
have been sharing our roadways for many years. His appearances at our driving
school classes will be missed
along with his dedicated presence at statewide training
events.
OLS for those of us who new
and appreciated Fred will not
be the same, but we wish
OLS the best as they search
for someone to fill this man’s
shoes for their task is an impossible one.
To the family we wish to
thank you for sharing Fred
with us for he dedicated many
hours of his time selflessly to
rail safety and education.
Fred will live on with those of
us who knew him and the
students he took the time to
reach out to. It is a life such as
his one of self sacrifice and
dedication to a cause that will
enable the life he lived to be
lived on in the lives of others
for many years to come!
Thanks Fred! We will miss
you! MEDTSEA
V OLUME 4, I SSUE 4
In previous articles we have
covered ways to utilize technology in your training programs. After attending a recent driver training conference, it was clear that some
time needs to be spent on the
basic things we as driving
instructors do. This article
was written to assist instructors in remembering the little
things. After speaking with
some of you over the past
month, I concluded that some
people need to take it back
and spend some time on the
basic principles. Why We Do
It: Your purpose is to teach
people basic driving skills,
and not just enough to pass
the test. Passing the test is
bonus or byproduct of quality
driver education, not the reason for it. Remember, they
will drive on the same streets
as you and your loved ones.
Pre-Drive Inspection: Every
student, every time he or she
drives, should be doing a predrive inspection of the vehicle. More often than not,
instructors are either in a
hurry or just too lazy to have
the students conduct even a
basic pre-drive check. How is
a student supposed to form
good habits if they are not
enforced from the very beginning of the student’s driving
career? Crashes: It’s simple: if
you allow your student to hit
something, it is your fault as
an instructor. You are not
there to sit in the passenger
seat and just say “left” or
“right.” You must have control of the vehicle AT ALL
TIMES! This is something I
have discussed with instructors many times and it will
usually end up with an instructor slightly angry with
me, but the facts are the facts.
You are responsible for both
your student and the vehicle,
as if you were in the driver’s
seat. Breaks vs Brakes: Sitting
in the car for hours can really
take its toll on instructors. Be
sure to use the same rule used
when teaching students about
fatigue. A good rule of thumb
is to stop every 100 miles or
every two hours. Be careful
around your “down time,”
most people experience
“lows” between approximately midnight and 6 a.m., and
again between approximately
two to four p.m.
P AGE 9
Practice what You Preach:
Very simply put: if you talk
the talk, walk the walk. Always wear your safety belt,
don’t ever say “do as I say,
not as I do,” adjust your head
restraint, and always use your
turn signals. These simple
rules will increase your credibility not only with your students but with school owners
as well. Remember, we are
here to teach people to drive,
not to pass a test. Be safe out
there! By
Richard
Chidester
Are you having your students
do a pre-drive inspection of
the vehicle? If not, why not?
It is a fundamental part of a
professional driver education
program. For more information on how to conduct a
proper pre drive inspection
go to AAA and learn the correct way to teach this vital
skill and start incorporating it
into your driving lesson today!
MEDTSEA
“E VERY STUDENT ,
EVERY TIME HE OR
SHE DRIVES , SHOULD
BE DOING A PRE DRIVE INSPECTION OF
THE VEHICLE . M ORE
OFTEN THAN NOT ,
INSTRUCTORS ARE
EITHER IN A HURRY
OR JUST TOO LAZY
TO HAVE THE
STUDENTS CONDUCT
EVEN A BASIC PRE DRIVE CHECK ”
V OLUME 4, I SSUE 4
P AGE 10
MEDTSEA’ S B OARD
OF
D IRECTORS
President
Anthony Vine
IndieDriver Educational Services
251 U S Route 1
Falmouth, Maine
04105
207-838-4634
Vice President
Michael Hancher
The Driving School
19 Pinewood Drive
Topsham, Maine
04086
Treasurer
Marvin Campbell
Mullen’s Driving
School
P O Box 36
Greene, Maine
04236
207-946-5340
Executive Sec.
Randy Greason
Vacationland Driving Academy
50 Underwood Wy
Windham, Maine
04062
207-892-0686
Board Member
Mike Gorham
Temple Driving
Academy
60 W River Rd
Waterville
ME 04901
207-873-5325
Board Member
Bob Mullen
The Driving School
104 Tandberg Trail
Windham, Maine
04062
207-892-8851
Board Member
Ben Mullen
The Driving School
129 Chapel Road
Waldoboro, ME.
04572
207-790-0677
Board Member
Glen Soucie
A-1 Driving School
86 Winthrop St.
Augusta, ME. 04330
1 207-622-1100
Board Member
Board Member
Betty ViguePerkins
Forest-Matthieu’s
Driving School
P.O. Box 5512
Augusta, ME. 04332
207-623-1002
Board Member
Don Dingley
The Driving
School
2 Paris Promenade,
South Paris , ME
04281
(207) 595-6390
Jeff Pitcher
46 Wendy Acres
Drive
Hermon, Maine
04401
P AGE 11
V OLUME 4, I SSUE 4
IndieDriver Educational Services
251 U S Route 1
Falmouth, Maine 04105
PLEASE D ON’ T C ONFUSE
ME DTSE A WITH ME DE A
W E ARE NOT THE SAME
O R G A N I Z AT I O N
Address Label Here
"With this technology,
traffic lights will be created
on demand when [two
cars] are trying to cross this
intersection, and they will
be turned down as soon as
we don't need it," explains
Ozan Tonguz, a professor
at Carnegie Mellon University, who helped develop the technology.
CNN) Being stuck in traffic is one of the
most infuriating experiences for a driver, but researchers at Carnegie Mellon
University may have found a solution.
They claim they can reduce the commute times of urban workers by 40% by
replacing physical traffic lights with virtual traffic lights.
Virtual traffic lights appear on the driver's dashboard and explain with green
and red arrows which direction they can
safely travel in, just like with normal
traffic lights. But they disappear once
the junction has been crossed.
The developers say virtual traffic lights
will cut carbon emissions, reduce accidents and cut those annoying commute
times.
This may seem futuristic but virtual traffic lights use connected vehicle technology which federal regulators will soon
make mandatory for cars as part of the
U.S. government's vehicle-to-vehicle
communication program.
"Our solution leverages this capability,"
says Tonguz. "Since cars can talk to each
other, we can manage the traffic control
at intersections without infrastructurebased traffic lights."
"It's almost like we are giving additional
life to people," says Tonguz. "Life that is
wasted on the road."