Arrowhead - Deer Valley Traffic Survival School

10/22/2019

Looking for AZNSC certified instructor for traffic survival school. Call Steve at 602 405 6644

03/04/2017

The Seven Deadly Myths about Seat Belts
In 1955 when Swedish car manufacturer Volvo first made seat belts a standard feature of cars, based on independent research that seat belts save lives, many American motorists would not wear them, feeling that seat belts were a nuisance. That same year Hollywood icon James Dean died in a two-car crash in Southern California, which he would have likely survived had he been wearing a seat belt. The star’s death launch a new era of public awareness about the importance of seat belt use, and helped give rise to the boom of the seat belt industry. It wasn’t until 11 years later in 1966 that president Johnson signed a law into effect making seat belt installation mandatory for all automobiles.
Today, roughly 11.5 percent of drivers still don’t buckle up, and they represent about one-half of automobile fatalities. Fortunately, 88 percent of the population wear seat belts up from only 14 percent in 1983. Despite decades of research and mountains of data confirming the simple fact that seat belts save lives, why do more than one in ten individuals still not buckle up? Most likely those who stubbornly resist buckling up, fall victims to one of the seven common seatbelt myths listed below.
Myth #1. Seatbelts are uncomfortable
Seatbelts never feel uncomfortable once wearing them becomes a habit. When one initially makes the adjustment from not wearing a seatbelt to getting used to putting one on, there might be a short interval of mild, mainly psychological discomfort, but usually after a few days, this slight discomfort wears off. Moreover, the discomfort occurring after a serious traffic injury is far worse, and of much longer duration, than the minimal and temporary discomfort one might feel while getting use to buckling up.
Myth #2. I’m not going that far, or I’m not driving fast.
There is a certain unconscious sense of comfort being close to home, the result of which is that many drivers let their guard down.
More than half of fatality crashes occur within 5 miles from home, and a whopping 77% occur within 15 miles from home. This should not be surprising, as most driving occurs in the general vicinity of one’s residence: the trip to the local grocery store, dropping the kids off at school, a trip to church or the neighborhood park, etc. Buckle up close to home because that’s where the crashes occur.
As for not driving that fast, the statistics speak for themselves: Most car crash fatalities occur at speeds of less than 40 miles per hour. Unrestrained, severe head injuries can occur with speeds as low as 15 mph.

Myth #3. I’m better off being thrown from my car in case of an accident.
Sheer nonsense! A driver or passenger, ejected from a car, is 30 times more likely to die. Thirty times! The foolishly naïve notion that one will make a soft landing on a bed of grass is sheer fantasy, neither borne out by the harsh reality of fatal crashes nor by the very laws of physics.
Myth #4. I don’t want to get trapped in a seatbelt.
Many worry about being trapped in fire or under water in the event of a car crash; the reality, though, is that only about ½ of one-percent of crashes end up in fire or under water. Additionally, there are those who worry about losing consciousness in the event of a collision. However, buckling up is the most likely means to remain conscious, as seat belts hold the occupant in place, and thereby protect the occupant from being dashed around, resulting in severe head trauma and resulting unconsciousness.
Myth #5. My seatbelts don’t work.
Some drivers feel that their seatbelts don’t work because safety belts are slack with normal driving. This is supposed to be the case to provide optimal comfort. However, seat belts are designed to tighten up in the event of the occupant being suddenly thrown forward.
Myth #6. My airbags will protect me, so I don’t need seat belts.
Airbags are designed to be a life-saving supplement to seat belts, not a replacement. For an airbag to work properly, the occupant must be in the proper position, which seat belts assure. Secondly, seat belts, not airbags, remain an automobile’s most important protective feature. Finally, airbags will not help you in rear-end or roll-over crashes.
Myth #7. Good Drivers don’t need to wear seat belts.
Assuming you’re a good driver and never make a mistake, what about the other guy who isn’t a good driver who hits you, or what about the driver who carelessly rear-ends you while you are waiting at a red light? What about blow outs, objects that suddenly fall off the vehicle in front of you, or that deer that runs into you from out of nowhere?
In short, it is a proven fact that seat belts save lives and that they don’t jeopardize those who wear them. For those who still stubbornly adhere to the above debunked myths, consider that insurance companies will typically pay much less, or perhaps nothing at all, if a particular driver involved in a car crash – regardless of fault – is discovered to have not buckled up.

03/04/2017

What Happens if I get a ticket in another state?
Let’s say you live in Phoenix, Arizona, and you want to escape the sweltering summer heat by taking the family on a weekend trip to San Diego. Eager to get to your hotel room (or to return home), you are going faster than you realize, and you are pulled over by a California State trooper and issued a speeding citation. You are an Arizona resident with an Arizona driver’s license, so you ask yourself this question: If I ignore this pesky out-of-state ticket, will it just disappear? The short answer is “no”.
All but five states (Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Tennessee, and Wisconsin) are members of the Driver’s License Compact (the DLC) – Nevada being the first state to join it in 1961. The DLC is an agreement between the participating 45 states that a moving violation in one state is treated as if the violation occurred in the driver’s home state with the penalties reflecting that of the home state. In fact, the DLC requires all participating states to report traffic violations to the home state.
In the above example of the stint to San Diego: The driver would be assessed two points on his/her driving record, which is the number of points Arizona assesses, even though speeding tickets only garner one point in California.
So, what are the potential consequences of not paying the ticket? Are you safe in your home state? Can you confidently thumb your nose at that out-of-state ticket?
Now, we get to why the Nonresident Violator Compact (the NVC) was formed in the late 70s: This compact helps ensure that all out-of-state drivers pay their fines. (All states but Alaska, California, Michigan, Montana, Oregon, and Wisconsin are members. Only two states: Wisconsin and Michigan are neither members of the DLC nor the NVC.)
Member states report unpaid fines to all other member states; and consequently, failure to pay a fine or comply with the terms of a citation in one member state would result in the suspension of the violator’s driver license until the driver satisfies the conditions of the out-of-state ticket.
The DLC and the NVC are not to be confused with the National Driver Register, which keeps track of all serious traffic offenses (such as a DUI), as well as suspended or revoked driver licenses. This serves to prevent a person who has a suspended or revoked license in one state from obtaining a license in another state.
Therefore, if you get a ticket in the vast majority of the fifty states it would certainly behoove you to pay it, or fight it, but certainly not ignore it. There is one other option: To take a defensive driving course, if eligible. An out-of-state driver can take an Arizona certified online Defensive Driving course from the convenience of home.

03/04/2017

Eight Surprising Traffic Laws in Arizona

To quote an old and time-honored maxim: “Ignorance of the law is no excuse.” Although most traffic violators know they are breaking the law, there are those who get ticketed for unknowingly breaking the law. To circumvent this from happening to you, here are 5 little known traffic laws in Arizona that it would behoove you to follow. On the flipside, this article concludes with three surprising things that are not illegal.
#1. You can get a speeding ticket for going at the posted limit. Yes, you can! In other words, it is possible to get a speeding ticket going 40 mph in a 40 mph zone. Ordinarily, going the posted speed limit is not ticket-able, of course. However, under certain conditions, it may not be safe or prudent to go the posted limit. Per ARS: 28-701A. A person shall not drive a vehicle on a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent under the circumstances, conditions and actual and potential hazards then existing.
In other words, under certain conditions such as heavy rain, rush hour traffic, accident, narrow or winding roads, pedestrians present, etc., a driver may have to reduce speed to accommodate these conditions or potential hazards. Not doing so, is reason enough to get a speeding ticket, even if one is not exceeding the posted limit.
#2. A driver must come to a complete stop when exiting a public or private driveway. ARS: 28-856. Emerging from alley, driveway or building
The driver of a vehicle emerging from an alley, driveway or building within a business or residential district shall:
1. Stop the vehicle immediately before driving onto a sidewalk or onto the sidewalk area extending across any alleyway or private driveway.
2. Yield the right-of-way to any pedestrian as necessary to avoid collision.
3. On entering the roadway, yield the right-of-way to all closely approaching vehicles on the roadway.
#3. A driver must come to a complete stop prior to making a right turn on a red light. Although most motorists are aware of this law, many find out only the hard way that making a rolling right at a red light is not only ticket-able, but is treated like running a red-light for which the violator would have to attend an 8-hour Traffic Survival School class (unless eligible for the 4-4 ½ hour Defensive Driving program).
In some states, such as California, points are only accessed on your driving record if you are ticketed by a police officer as opposed to photo enforcement. However, not so in Arizona. A photo ticket carries the same weight as a ticket by a policeman, which is 2 points on your driving record.
#4. Driving too slowly. Yes, driving too slowly is ticket-able. In fact, there is a little know law in Arizona, which stipulates that if a driver is holding up five or more vehicles, by law, he has to pull over and let them pass.
#5.a. Speeding ticket for 1 mph over the limit? Yes, you can get a speeding ticket for going just 1 mile over the speed limit. There is no 5-10 miles over-the-limit safety cushion. Speed limits are just that: limits, not suggested guidelines. However, with the exception of a 15-mph school zone, law enforcement will not typically pull you over for going less than 5 miles per hour over the limit, and in many cases for going less than ten …but they could. It is officer discretion. Much more than not, police officers are reasonable when it comes to traffic stops; i.e., they will consider factors such a flow of traffic, weather conditions, etc., when deciding who to pull over. Bear in mind a good rule of thumb: If you are passing most everybody up, you are at much greater risk for a citation.
5.b. Waste of a Finite Resource. Would you believe you can get a ticket for wasting fuel? If on an urbanized highway where the posted speed limit is 55 mph and you are going 56mph, but not more than 65mph, you cannot get a speeding ticket. Instead, you can get a mere $15.00 ticket, which cannot be assessed against your driving record, for wasting fuel! This law is an old throwback from the 70s when there was a fuel shortage. Believe it or not, people actually do receive a ticket for this! The statute reads as follows:
28-702.01. Urbanized areas; waste of a finite resource; civil penalties
A. If the maximum speed limit on a public highway in this state is fifty-five miles per hour, a person shall not drive a motor vehicle at a speed in excess of fifty-five miles per hour on that highway. If the speed at which the person is alleged to have driven as provided in section 28-707, subsection A or the speed at which the court finds the person drove is sixty-five miles per hour or less, the offense is designated as the waste of a finite resource and is a civil traffic violation subject to subsection B of this section.
Now, here are three things that you CAN do legally in Arizona, but proceed with caution.
#1. U-Turns on Red Light Unless otherwise posted, and assuming you don’t enter the intersection, it is legal to make a U-turn on a red light in Arizona. However, you must yield the right-of-way to oncoming traffic.
#2. Changing lanes in the middle of an intersection. In Arizona, it is not illegal to change lanes in the middle of an intersection. However, it is illegal to pass another vehicle within 100 feet of a street crossing. Therefore, you can change lanes in the middle of an intersection, but not pass someone up there. Needless to say, if you need to change lanes, it’s usually safer to do so before entering or after crossing an intersection.
#3 Passengers in the back bed of a pickup truck. There is no law in Arizona prohibiting passengers from riding in the cargo area of a pickup truck. Bear in mind, though, that child restraint and seat belt laws do apply. Additionally, should there be an injury accident with some in the back bed of a pickup truck, the insurance company against whom the claim is filed may not pay for such injuries.
Moreover, there is no law in Arizona which mandates that pets be somehow secured in a vehicle.
There you have it: Five little know violations for which one can get a ticket and three things that are surprisingly not illegal.

10/11/2016

HOW LONG DO POINTS STAY ON YOUR DRIVING RECORD?

The Arizona Administrative Code, Title 17 Transportation, Article 4 Driver Licenses, Paragraph E Suspension for accumulation of excessive points [states as follows]:

The Department shall mail an order of suspension as prescribed under A.R.S. § 28-3318 to a driver who accumulates an excessive amount of points. The order of suspension shall:

1. Specify the length of the suspension as follows:
a. A three-month suspension for accumulation of 8 to 12 points in a twelve-month period if a traffic survival school course was successfully completed in the previous twenty-four-month period
b. A three-month suspension for accumulation of 13 to 17 points in a twelve-month period;
c. A six-month suspension for accumulation of 18 to 23 points in a twelve-month period; and
d. A twelve-month suspension for accumulation of 24 or more points in a thirty-six-month period;

2. Specify the period within which the driver may submit a hearing request to the Department; and
3. Specify the effective date of the suspension.

It is clear from this that if a person continues to accumulate points, they will be used to determine remedial actions for as long as 36 months. Generally, points drop from consideration after one year, but ONLY if the person gets no more violations. If they do, the points are tracked for three years.

Theoretically, since a person’s MVR is really a permanent thing in MVD storage files, they could re-figure points for an even longer period of time merely by going back and tallying them up from the MVR (for any given time period) if there was some reason to do so. It is helpful to think of points as simply a measurement tool, rather than a concrete thing. We could go back and figure how many points a person had ten years ago, or for any given time period – but that doesn’t mean MVD would USE that information for anything.

05/12/2016

Still not wearing your seatbelt? Watch this video and you might change your mind-GRAPHIC- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61lAetwci6I

READ ME ******************** Worst Car Accident Ever Recorded ,the woman gets thrown out her car 15meteres plus in the air. this Fatal, Deadly, Horrible, Hor...