Scott Marler, Iowa DOT Director | Iowa Department of Transportation
Scott Marler, Iowa DOT Director | Iowa Department of Transportation
The Iowa Department of Transportation is launching a new driver safety initiative called Alive at 25. This program aims to help young drivers in Iowa navigate challenges such as peer pressure, risky decisions, and inexperience. The initiative is part of National Teen Driver Safety Week and focuses on improving driving behavior among the state's youngest drivers.
Alive at 25 is a four-hour course designed to complement standard driver education programs. It educates participants about the dangers of speeding, distractions, peer pressure, and driver inexperience. Young drivers with a second violation on their intermediate license can choose to complete this program through the Iowa Illinois Safety Council instead of facing a license suspension. If completed by the deadline said in their suspension notice, the Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) will lift the suspension.
Research indicates that suspensions do not effectively improve driving behavior, but education can have a positive impact. A team from the MVD, DOT Traffic & Safety, UnityPoint Health, and the University of Iowa recommended Alive at 25 after reviewing crash data and national best practices. Developed by the National Safety Council for drivers aged 15 to 24, it provides practical tools to prevent crashes and save lives.
The curriculum covers risk recognition, poor decision-making impacts, distractions, peer pressure, driver inexperience, state laws on impaired driving and other topics. "Alive at 25 is not a repeat of driver education," says Vania Boyd, Iowa DOT’s Driver Education Program Manager. "This program focuses solely on improving poor driving behaviors such as speeding, distracted driving, and peer pressure."
The program will be administered jointly by MVD and the Iowa Illinois Safety Council with regular coordination to monitor participation and completions. More information can be found on the Iowa DOT’s Driver Improvement Program web page or by contacting Vania Boyd.
For further details: https://iowadot.gov/mvd/ods/driver-improvement-programs
Information from this article can be found here.
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