Public health preparedness center offers virtual defensive driving

San Antonio (Jan. 16, 2004) – Texas roadways can be very dangerous places. More than 3,500 people lost their lives on the state’s highways in calendar year 1999 and nearly 3,800 were killed in 2000, according to statistics released last year by the Texas Department of Public Safety. On one day alone – Saturday, July 29, 2000 – 30 people died in motor vehicle accidents.

Traffic violations contributed to the majority of the fatalities during 2000. Speeding was implicated in 1,186 accidents, failure to yield in 371, disregarding stop signs or lights in 104, and so forth. Clearly, driving smart – understanding and following the principles of defensive driving – might have headed off many of the roadway tragedies that year.

As a public service, the Center for Public Health Preparedness and Biomedical Research (CPHPBR) at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio now offers a virtual defensive driving course via the Internet. The course can be accessed via a hyperlink in the middle of the CPHPBR Web page atcphpbr.uthscsa.edu/.

An individual who takes the course online can proceed at his own pace from the comfort of his personal computer and pick up where he left off (as long as the entire six-hour course is completed within six months). Completion of the defensive driving course is good for reducing auto insurance premiums or satisfying court-imposed education.

The course is offered by a private Internet training company and the curriculum meets state driver training standards. The online registration fee is $39.99.



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