XENIA -- The news of six teens losing their lives in a crash near Youngstown puts the dangers of teen driving in the forefront.
Teenage drivers are most vulnerable behind the wheel and are most at risk of getting into an accidents, that's according to AAA of Dayton. The auto club has a number of ideas for parents to help keep their children safe, such as writing up a contract with all the driving rules your teen has to follow. You should go over the list with them and have them sign it to show them how serious they need to take getting behind the wheel.
Margary Murray told us she remembers when her kids started to drive, ''I was very nervous when they started driving just because so many things can happen that you aren't prepared for.''
So she put rules in place, like her teen driver could not have any other riders in the car with them.
According the Ohio State Highway Patrol, that's one of the most important rules to set. There should be no more than one other person in the car with your teen driver, which is the law in Ohio for new drivers until they turn 17.
''The more passengers the more potentials there are for distractions in the vehicle," Sgt. John Lumpcik with the State Patrol told us.
Here's a scary statistic: Four of every 10 teen crash deaths occur at night, and OSHP says that's when you should have your kids parked. They suggest 10 pm, even though Ohio law says differently. According to state law, 16 year olds can be on the road until midnight, while 17 year olds can drive until 1 am.
The third piece of advice from OSHP is to limit distractions for your teen driver. Sgt. Lumpcik says that is the biggest problem for teens, doing things like adjusting the radio or CD, using a cell phone, or even eating and drinking.
But maybe most important, Sgt. Lumpcik says, is to make sure your teen driver and their passengers are wearing their seat belt.
AAA says they would like to take some of their concerns about teen drivers to state legislators. A couple of things they would liked changed in Ohio law are earlier curfew times for teen drivers and making it a primary offense to violate those restrictions.
Teenage drivers are most vulnerable behind the wheel and are most at risk of getting into an accidents, that's according to AAA of Dayton. The auto club has a number of ideas for parents to help keep their children safe, such as writing up a contract with all the driving rules your teen has to follow. You should go over the list with them and have them sign it to show them how serious they need to take getting behind the wheel.
Margary Murray told us she remembers when her kids started to drive, ''I was very nervous when they started driving just because so many things can happen that you aren't prepared for.''
So she put rules in place, like her teen driver could not have any other riders in the car with them.
According the Ohio State Highway Patrol, that's one of the most important rules to set. There should be no more than one other person in the car with your teen driver, which is the law in Ohio for new drivers until they turn 17.
''The more passengers the more potentials there are for distractions in the vehicle," Sgt. John Lumpcik with the State Patrol told us.
Here's a scary statistic: Four of every 10 teen crash deaths occur at night, and OSHP says that's when you should have your kids parked. They suggest 10 pm, even though Ohio law says differently. According to state law, 16 year olds can be on the road until midnight, while 17 year olds can drive until 1 am.
The third piece of advice from OSHP is to limit distractions for your teen driver. Sgt. Lumpcik says that is the biggest problem for teens, doing things like adjusting the radio or CD, using a cell phone, or even eating and drinking.
But maybe most important, Sgt. Lumpcik says, is to make sure your teen driver and their passengers are wearing their seat belt.
AAA says they would like to take some of their concerns about teen drivers to state legislators. A couple of things they would liked changed in Ohio law are earlier curfew times for teen drivers and making it a primary offense to violate those restrictions.