NETS kicks off Drive Safely Work Week, promoting a full-circle approach to combating distracted driving

Vienna, Va. --The Network of Employers for Traffic Safety (NETS) today kicked-off Drive Safely Work Week, Focus 360°- Getting there safely is everyone’s business.  The campaign focuses on distracted driving and includes the roles and responsibilities of passengers, pedestrians and cyclists in preventing distracted driving-related incidents.

The 2011 Drive Safely Work Week (DSWW) employer tool kit was developed by NETS in partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation.

“Distracted driving is a complex issue that involves more than just drivers,” said Bill Windsor, NETS Chairman and Associate Vice President of Nationwide Insurance.  "Whether we're the driver, a passenger, a pedestrian, or cyclist, there are things we can do to help prevent distracted driving-related incidents."

NETS provides a free comprehensive tool kit that employers can download to help plan their campaign activities. The DSWW materials, also available in Spanish for the first time, are designed to support employer efforts to initiate or sustain a corporate mobile device policy and to increase awareness on behaviors that contribute to distracted driving-related incidents. 

“Drive Safely Work Week is an opportunity to address the safety of all employees, not just those who drive as a part of their job,” Windsor said.  “Employers have the potential to reach one-half of the nation's population, making them a key component in the fight against distracted driving.”

Eighty-eight percent of the nearly 5000 organizations that participated in the 2010 campaign reported they already had or would have a mobile device policy in place this year.  Furthermore, more than half of the organizations that responded to last year’s follow-up survey indicated they shared or in the future would consider sharing the campaign materials outside of the workplace to reach employee family members and members of the community in which the organizations operate.

About DSWW

Drive Safely Work Week has been sponsored by NETS since 1996.  The campaign is observed nationally each year during the first full week of October; however, the materials are not dated and may be used anytime throughout the year.  In 2010, Drive Safely Work Week reached an estimated 20 million employees.

About NETS

NETS is a 501(c) 3 organization, a partnership between the U.S. Federal government and the private sector.  Board of Directors members include Abbott, AmeriFleet Transportation, Chubb Group of Insurance Companies, The Coca-Cola Company, Johnson & Johnson, Liberty Mutual Insurance Group, Monsanto Company, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Group, and UPS.  In addition, NETS’ Board of Directors includes federal liaisons from the National Highway Transportation Administration (NHTSA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Established in 1989, NETS is dedicated to improving the safety and health of employees, their families, and members of the communities in which they live and work by preventing traffic crashes that occur on and off the job.