Driving tip: Keep your tires properly inflated

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, (NHTSA) 11,000 tire-related crashes occur each year. Your tires can become underinflated more easily in the winter, as cold temperatures cause a loss in tire pressure.  Coming into contact with potholes or curbs can also cause your tires to be underinflated quickly. Follow these tips from NHTSA to make sure your tires are properly inflated.

• Step 1: Locate the recommended tire pressure on the Tire and Loading Information Labels on the driver's side door edge or post or in the owner's manual. (Remember, the correct pressure for your tire is what the vehicle manufacturer has listed, NOT what is listed on the tire itself.)
• Step 2: Check the tire pressure of all tires.
• Step 3: If the tire pressure is too high in any of the tires, slowly release air by gently pressing on the tire valve stem with the edge of your tire gauge until you get to the correct pressure.
• Step 4: If the tire pressure is too low, note the difference between the measured tire pressure and the correct tire pressure. These "missing" pounds of pressure are what you will need to add. At a service station, add the missing pounds of air pressure to each tire that is underinflated.
• Step 5: Check all the tires to make sure they have the same air pressure (except in cases in which the front and rear tires are supposed to have different amounts of pressure).

Remember: The vehicle manufacturer's recommended tire inflation pressure is the proper psi (pounds per square inch) or kPa (kilopascals—the metric measure used internationally) when a tire is cold, meaning it has not been driven on for at least three hours. To get an accurate tire pressure reading, you must measure tire pressure when the tires are cold or compensate for the extra pressure in warm tires.

For additional tire tips from NHTSA, see more online.

The importance of your driving record

Any unsafe driving activity for which you are cited is posted to your driving record. Offenses that involve an alcohol conviction remain on your record for life. Other offenses, such as speeding or disobeying a traffic signal, may remain on your record for seven years. Your driving record can be requested by schools, insurance companies, and/or potential employers as part of a background check related to a college application, application for insurance or job offer. For information on obtaining a copy of your driving record visit the Secretary of State's Requesting a Driving or Vehicle Record page.

Drivers between the ages of 16 and 20 are typically the least experienced drivers on the road. When alcohol is added to their inexperience, the results can be deadly. No matter what age you are, never drink and drive. Ruth Johnson Secretary of State

Warn, report drivers without headlights

Headlights must be turned on one half-hour after sunset until one half-hour before sunrise, and any time there is not enough daylight to see people and vehicles clearly at 500 feet.

If you observe someone driving without headlights when visibility obviously requires them, warn them by flashing your low-beam headlights off and on once or twice. If the driver does not heed your warning, call 9-1-1 and report the dangerous situation to police.

Do not flash your high beams. It is illegal to flash your high beams within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle. 

Teaching tip for parents

Be a driving role model.

Children copy their parents' behavior, so your driving should set a good example for your teen to imitate. Be sure that you:

• Obey all traffic laws.
• Correct any unsafe driving habits such as driving aggressively, speeding, accelerating through yellow lights, etc.
• Refrain from using your cell phone or texting while driving.

Excerpted from The Parent's Supervised Driving Guide, a helpful resource for families with young drivers.

New tech may combat texting and driving

The City of Chicago is considering the use of technology called the "Textalyzer" to determine if someone was texting and driving before a crash.

Associated Press story