Drive Smart Virginia is a non-profit organization in Virginia that is dedicated to making Virginia’s roads the safest in the country, which means your trip in your Virginia car rental can be safe. Drive Safe was founded by car insurance companies that represent more than 85% of the driving insured on the roads of the state.

The stats

Many people drive their cars every day. When you are here with your Virginia car rental, you will likely be out and about to explore the state without worrying about accidents. In 2010, there were 116,744 traffic crashes in the state. Unfortunately, 756 people died and 62,976 were injured in these accidents. The goal of Drive Smart is to continue to reduce these statistics. They build relationships with community partners and target those who are most vulnerable on the roadways through training and media opportunities.

History of the organization

When you are here with your Virginia car rental, you may learn that Drive Smart Virginia was founded in 1995 by six insurance companies, with more organizations joining in later years. The Board of Directors is made up of leaders from private industry, state and federal government, law enforcement, media, and traffic safety organizations. This is a private-public partnership that seeks to reduce traffic related injuries and fatalities.

What are they working on?

Drive Safe Virginia has a number of projects that they work on to help make the roads in Virginia safer. Distracted driving is a problem in every state in the country, and 80% of all crashes can be attributed to all forms of distracted driving (not just cell phones, but all distractions). Distracted driving can include eating, drinking, personal grooming, reading, and more. There is also the Click It or Ticket campaign, which reminds people to buckle up.

What about bikes and pedestrians?

When you are here with your Virginia car rental, you are likely to walk around or maybe even ride a bike a bit. Cyclists and pedestrians also share the road with cars and need to be aware of what’s happening around them. Drive Smart Virginia works with Bike Walk Virginia to help improve understanding and awareness of all of the uses of the road to reduce injuries and fatalities.

Traffic laws

When you are here with your Virginia car rental, you will need to follow the rules of the road in the state. Drive Smart Virginia has worked to have effective laws in place to ensure people are safe on the roadways. For example, there is a law against using a hand-held personal communication device to enter letters or text while driving. You are also prohibited from reading emails or text messages when driving. Its also very important to use your safety belt when you are in the car. More than 50% of traffic fatalities occur because the passenger is not wearing their seatbelt. It is the law in Virginia that people in the front seat are buckled up and it is strongly recommended that people in the back also wear their seatbelt. Virginia is also a state with one of the toughest states in the country when it comes to impaired driving. There are sobriety checkpoints that are set up around the state to determine if people are driving impaired.

When you are here with your Virginia car rental, you will find that Drive Safe Virginia is working to make the state a safer place when you drive here. They sponsor a number of programs to bring awareness to the public to increase safety on the road. You can find out more about the types of cars available for rent by reading our fleet guide.

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