Moms Talk: June 10, a Deadly Day for Teens

Read a surprising story in The Virginian-Pilot this morning that said June 10 is the second-deadliest day of the year for teen traffic fatalities. Here's a section of the story:

From 2005 through 2009, almost 20 youths between 13 and 19 died on that day each year in traffic accidents nationwide, either as drivers or passengers, AAA said. May 20 ranked as the worst day, at slightly more than 21 deaths on average. That's significantly higher than the year-round daily average of 12.5 teen fatalities.

"Proms, graduation parties, end-of-the-school-year celebrations are all likely candidates as contributing factors," said Jacob Nelson, director of traffic safety advocacy and research for AAA.

It doesn't get better next month. Of the 10 days with the most traffic-related deaths of teens, five were in July. July 4 ranked right behind June 10, with anaverage of 19.4 deaths.

Pretty alarming stuff. How would you factor this information into your parenting if you had a teen on the road? Is it a serious concern? Would you ask your children to act more cautiously than they normally do? Would you restrict when they could drive or how many friends can ride with them?