The Tennessee Highway Patrol’s “Teens and Trucks” program made a stop at Rhea County High School on Tuesday morning.
Students in Scott Arnold’s driver’s education class had the chance to speak to THP Sgt. Alan Bailey about highway safety.
Bailey walked the students through various situations that could happen in reality on the highway. He demonstrated how to drive safely and how to effectively share the road with tractor-trailers.
Further, Rhea County High School was able to host the Tennessee Highway Patrol big rig for driver’s education students.
Bailey told The Herald News, “We use this tractor trailer all across the state of Tennessee. Most recently, we were at the Meigs County versus McMinn Central football game and we luckily were able to stop by Rhea County today before we head to Chattanooga and the I-75 Welcome Center.”
Tennessee Highway Patrol brings Teens and Trucks Share the Road Program to area high school. https://t.co/zJn5Y4IFQp pic.twitter.com/E7pcx1Msvp
— CVSA (@CVSA) September 28, 2017
Bailey also stated that distracted driving has become an increasingly more common issue in highway safety – and not only among young drivers.
Teens Use Virtual Reality Simulators To Learn How To Drive Around Trucks
“We would much rather they make a mistake on the simulator and learn from it instead of having a real-life accident on the highway. Some students will take this lesson more seriously than others but if we can get through to one kid, we believe it’s worth it.”
Students were taught about move-over law, distracted driving, effects of cutting off a tractor-trailer and more.
Within the truck the students were able to use 6 virtual reality simulator stations that come fully equiped with wheels, brakes, and pedals. The TV monitors wrap around the driver’s seat to make the experience truly one to remember.
The sort of virtual reality has become so realistic that some companies, like UPS, are adopting VR technollogy as a pivitol training technique. See it here.