VIDEO CONTEST INVITES TEENS TO CONVINCE PASSENGERS TO SPEAK UP WHEN IN A VEHICLE BEING DRIVEN UNSAFELY

National Road Safety Foundation's Drive2Life PSA Contest Offers $2,000 Prize, 
Chance to Work with Emmy-Winning Producer to Create PSA that will Air on TV Nationally

NEW YORK, Jan. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Road Safety Foundation (NRSF) is launching its 15^th annual Drive2Life PSA Contest, inviting teens nationwide to submit their ideas for a TV public service announcement encouraging passengers to SPEAK UP when in a vehicle being driven unsafely.

The contest opens on Jan. 15, and all entries must be received by March 25, 2024.

The winner will receive $2,000 prize and a chance to work with an Emmy Award-winning producer to turn his or her idea into a PSA that will air nationwide on more than 170 TV stations on the nationally-syndicated program "Teen Kids News" next May during Global Youth Traffic Safety Month. In addition, two runners-up in each grade category (grades 6?8 and grades 9?12) will each receive $500.  The teachers of the winner and runners-up will each receive a $100 gift card.

Nearly 6,300 passengers died in traffic crashes in 2020 ? about 15 percent of all traffic fatalities nationwide, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.  

"Many of those lives might have been saved had a passenger in the vehicle insisted that the driver slow down, stop texting or, if impaired, not get behind the wheel in the first place," said Michelle Anderson of the National Road Safety Foundation.  "We believe creative messages from young people that encourage passengers of all ages to speak up can and will make a difference on our roads and highways." 

The contest is being conducted in partnership with the American Driver & Traffic Safety Education Association (ADTSEA,) which represents driver education teachers and instructors nationally. Entries will be judged by NRSF staff and a blue-ribbon panel of driver education teachers from ADTSEA. 

For information, entry form, prize details and the winning videos from past years, visit www.nrsf.org/contests/drive2life.  The site also includes free curriculum materials that teachers and parents can use to talk with teens about how to speak up for safety.

The National Road Safety Foundation, a non-profit organization, has for more than 60 years created driver education and safe driving programs for free distribution to teachers, police, traffic safety agencies, youth advocacy groups and others.  NRSF has programs on distracted driving, speed and aggression, impaired driving, drowsy driving and other traffic safety issues.  NRSF also sponsors national contests for teens in partnership with SADD and FCCLA and has regional contests partnering with auto shows in Chicago and Detroit.  Free materials and videos are at  www.nrsf.org

ADTSEA, with more than 1,000 professional and corporate members, develops driver education materials, issues credentials to driver ed instructors, hosts conferences and provides consulting services for driving schools.

SOURCE The National Road Safety Foundation