CHP to offer free driving safety class for teens and their parents

On Wednesday June 10 th , the California Highway Patrol (CHP) is offering a free driving safety “Start Smart” class for young drivers age 15 through 19 and their parents.

CHP officers will teach the class and discuss factors that contribute to crashes, how to avoid them, and will talk about investigating fatal crashes involving teenage drivers.

Officers want to remind parents that driving deaths are the number one killer of teens and the most frequent causes are distracted and reckless driving. A crash is most common during a teen’s first year of driving.

The fatal crash risk per mile driven by 16-year-olds is twice that of 18 to 19-year-olds, and about seven times the risk for drivers ages 30-59 according to CHP.

As summer break is beginning for many schools, teens will have more free time and will spend a lot of it on the road with their friends, CHP said.

The class will be from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Monterey Area CHP Office in Salinas.

For more information, call the Monterey Area CHP office at (831) 769-2100.