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January 2024
On behalf of the Oregon Department of Transportation, we would like to wish you and your family a wonderful and safe New Year! We are so grateful for your continued partnership to help reduce traffic related injuries in Oregon. Traffic fatalities are beginning to slowly decline nationally after a surge during the pandemic, but we have a long way to go to get to zero deaths. Thank you and we look forward to continuing this trend into 2024!
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Oregon Friendly Driver Course
The Oregon Friendly Driver program is a class that teaches drivers of all skill levels how to drive safely around people who walk and ride bikes. Find out more about how you can sign up for this free 75-minute class or bring it to your business or community.
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Rules of the Road – Headlights
As we begin to enter winter weather please remember this important driving tip: The automatic headlight control in vehicles detects brightness outside the vehicle with an Illuminance sensor which activates when light picked up by the sensor drops below a certain level. This does not activate because of inclement weather such as snow, rain, or fog, so please use your headlights manually for safety while driving in these weather conditions.
In addition, daytime running lights (DRL) on most new vehicles may activate white lights to the front but leave the taillights off which leads to many driving at night or in inclement weather feeling headlights are on without any rear lighting being present. If in doubt, turn your headlights on.
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Guide For Parents of Teens
There is a lot you can do to help your child stay safe behind the wheel as a new driver. Teen drivers are about 3 times as likely as drivers 20 and older to die in a crash. Immaturity and inexperience make for a high-risk combination. Check out this guide from Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and enroll your teen in an ODOT-approved driver ed course.
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Traffic Safety Cameras: New Guide
A new report from the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), with the support of State Farm®, examines traffic safety cameras – an underutilized tool in the fight to reduce dangerous driving behaviors that contribute to more than 100 people dying on U.S. roads every day. The report discusses the benefits of traffic safety cameras that detect speeding, red-light running, and school bus stop-arm violations, and makes recommendations to states and traffic safety partners considering implementing or expanding the use of this proven technology.
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Work Zone Safety Billboard Contest
High school students in Oregon have an opportunity to design a billboard to educate drivers – especially young drivers – about the dangers of work zones and encourage safe driving. Imagine seeing your design on a giant billboard and realizing the impact it could have on people’s lives! And bonus, students could win $250 and bragging rights. Winning posters from the November 2023 contest were selected from Silverton High School and Grant High School in Portland.
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Resources
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