Michelin, Couric team up for safe driving campaign

GREENVILLE, S.C. (Oct. 19, 2015) — Michelin North America Inc. and former CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric are asking drivers to share their best advice and stories for staying safe on the road using #SharingSafety.

The Michelin #SharingSafety campaign kicks off during National Teen Driver Safety Week, Oct. 18-24, and features a video with Ms. Couric — now Yahoo.com's global news anchor — who shares her safe-driving story and advice, and encourages drivers across America to do the same.

By crowdsourcing and sharing advice across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the #SharingSafety hashtag, Michelin said the campaign offers an additional resource for road safety.  

 Michelin also unveiled the results of a recent survey, including:

• The majority of drivers are confident in their own driving abilities (81 percent rank themselves highly), but 66 percent have felt unsafe when someone else was at the wheel.

• About 73 percent or respondents have witnessed an accident, 76 percent have experienced a “close call” first-hand  while 62 percent have been in an accident that someone else caused.

• About 69 percent see other motorists ignoring safe-driving practices daily.

• About 75 percent of drivers admit to “offering advice from the other seat.”

• The best sources of advice are still: dad (selected by 52 percent), mom (32 percent) and driver's education instructors (27 percent).

• The driving advice people receive most frequently includes signaling before changing lanes (75 percent) and staying in the right lane unless you're passing (68 percent).

Car crashes remain the No. 1 killer of teens, with 2,614 teen drivers of passenger vehicles involved in fatal crashes in 2013, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

“We want to draw people into a national conversation about road safety during National Teen Driver Safety Week,” said Pete Selleck, chairman and president of Michelin North America.

“Sharing even simple tips like how to maintain tires could mean the difference between life or death.”

 A 2014 study by Michelin found significant gaps in teen road readiness, including tire-related safety knowledge and skills, the tire maker said.

To close current safety gaps in the U.S. driver's education curriculum, Michelin launched the Beyond the Driving Test campaign.

For more information, visit beyondthedrivingtest.com.