AAA: Fatal Crashes for Teens Increase During Summer

Agency offers tips for encouraging safe driving among teenagers.

AAA is urging parents to increase their focus on encouraging traffic safety for their teens during the summer months. The most fatal crashes for teens occur between Memorial Day and Labor Day, with seven of the 10 deadliest days for teens occurring during the summer months, according to a Monday AAA press release. “Parents should not underestimate the critical role they play in keeping their teens safe, especially during these high-risk months,” said Brad Roeber, AAA Chicago regional president, in the press release. “Life feels more care-free when school’s out and teens have more opportunities to drive or ride in cars late at night with other teens – a deadly mix." Over the summer months between 2005 and 2009, more than 7,300 teen drivers …

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Filling Up Costly as Gas Prices Soar

Prices the highest in three years, and could be going higher.

For the first time in nearly three years, the monthly average for gas climbed above $4 per gallon, according to a Thursday AAA press release. In McHenry County, the average price for regular unleaded gas is $4.04 per gallon, which is 40 cents higher than last month's average and $1.01 more than motorists were paying in April 2010, according to the news release. Prices at area stations ranged Thursday between $3.97 and $4.10 per gallon, according to Gas Buddy website. Some experts are saying prices could hit $5 per gallon by Memorial Day, while others are predicting that is unlikely, according to a CBS Chicago.  The AAA press release explains that the higher prices have to do with “unrest in the Middle East” and a switch to a more expensive…

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Spend Wisely

Don't Get Caught Out in the Cold

A little bit of preparation and attention to things now may save you big later.

As I watched recent news stories of the storms hitting the Midwest and East coast, especially my hometown of Western New York with drivers stuck in cars overnight, I was prompted to think about what emergency supplies I have in my own car. Zilch, zero, nada that's what emergency supplies are in the car that I use when I travel to do stories in villages and townships that are many miles from home. However, such is not the case with the family car (actually van); there are jumper cables, tools, blankets, and flares in the back. While in the glove box a flashlight and emergency hammer (knocks out windshields and cuts seatbelts in extreme emergencies) are close at hand. With my own car lacking all emergency supplies I set out to research …