Teaching teens safe driving habits will be the topic of the second annual MAKUS night to be held at the Tivoli Theatre Monday evening. Judy Appleby, founder of MAKUS, is inviting the community to participate in “Alive to Drive,” a program she said can make a difference in the lives of Chattanooga’s young drivers.

“Over 6,000 teens will die this year in car crashes,” she said. “This is an issue that can’t be ignored by parents or teens.”

Phil Berardelli, national speaker and author of several teen driving manuals, will be the featured speaker. Mr. Berardelli has long sought to change the prevailing attitude among teens and their parents that a kid’s 16th birthday is synonymous with a trip to the DMV.

“It has been engrained into teen culture, with the complicity of a lot of parents, that getting your license is an entitlement instead of a privilege that has to be earned,” Mr. Berardelli said.

The problem with this entitlement mentality is the dangerous position in which it leaves teen drivers. With busier roadways and more dangerous driving conditions combined with more aggressive drivers, Mr. Berardelli insists the nations roads are an unfriendly environment for any driver, but especially teens.

“It is not a good place for inexperienced or immature drivers,” he said. “Especially when they’re driving with other kids as passengers.”

Mr. Berardelli said some of the worst accidents he has seen have been accidents involving teen drivers who had teen passengers in the car. And he has the numbers to back him up. “The risk increases almost exponentially to the number of kids in the car. Two teens in a car is twice as dangerous as one. Three teens is twice as dangerous as two,” he said.” If a driver gets distracted, it increases the risk that they will miss something. Kids driving with kids tend to encourage distracted driving.”

The introduction of a graduated licensing system in more than half of all states has been an important trend over the last five years, according to Mr. Berardelli. Tight restrictions on young drivers that loosen with time and good performance behind the wheel give kids a chance to prove to their parents, and themselves, that they are ready for the responsibility driving.

“It’s something that parents should have been doing all along,” Mr. Berardelli said.

While his message is meant to decrease teen driving accidents and fatalities, Mr. Berardelli’s remarks are most often aimed at parents. Teens don’t appreciate his words of wisdom if it means missing out on an American rite of passage. But this father and former teacher advises parents against allowing their teen to make the decision about when they are ready to begin driving.

“I want to give parents enough information so that they can impose restrictions and a structure where their kids will be able to learn properly,” Mr. Berardelli said. “It will make a difference if parents are willing to take the responsibility.”

“Alive to Drive” is a free program and open to the community. Focusing on preparing teens to drive safely, the program will be held at the Tivoli Theatre on Monday, October 20, at 6:30 p.m. Mayor Corker is scheduled to open the evening, which will include the first showing of “It Could Happen To You,” the second MAKUS video. For more information on “Alive to Drive,” call (423) 593-1505.