Start the Year Strong
The new year is the perfect time for workplace leaders to hit refresh and recommit to safety. Let us help you protect your employees – on and off the road. Explore our free resources and turn your safety resolutions into reality.
Stock Up on Safety
Our Safe Driving Toolkit is packed with ready-to-use materials to tackle road safety challenges like distracted driving and occupant protection. You’ll also find resources designed to help your team understand the issues and to help you implement safe driving policies.
Here’s what is included in the kit:
- Eye-catching safety posters
- Engaging videos
- Quick-read fact sheets
- Policy templates to guide your team
- Shareable social media graphics
Many items are available in English and Spanish.
Positive Difference
Safety isn’t just a checkbox – it can be a game-changer. A safe workplace helps prevent:
- Crashes and injuries on the road
- Musculoskeletal injuries
- Respiratory issues
- Incidents involving hazardous materials or machinery
When you prioritize safety, you stay compliant, protect your bottom line, boost morale and attract top talent.
Make it Happen
Turn your New Year’s safety resolutions into action. With our Safe Driving Toolkit, you’ll have everything you need to create safer roads and workplaces across Ohio.
Let’s make safety second nature — starting today!
Drive to Conditions
Winter weather brings ice, sleet, freezing rain and piles of snow. All can create unpredictable and dangerous road conditions. These hazards only exacerbate two of the biggest contributors to crashes involving injury and damage to property: speeding and distraction.
Be sure your employees and their family members are ready to handle inclement conditions. First, review this list of common crash contributing factors from the National Safety Council:
- Driving too fast for conditions
- Careless or distracted driving
- Failure to yield right-of-way
- Improper lane usage
Discuss ways to stay focused. To promote distraction-free driving, get everyone on your team signed up to take the NSC Just Drive Pledge. Incentivize participation.
Minor lapses in speed control and attention can quickly escalate into serious incidents. In 2023, more than 22,000 people were injured and more than 101,000 snow/sleet-related crashes were reported across the U.S., according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, highlighting how weather multiplies risk.
Share NHTSA winter weather driving tips.
Adjust Accordingly
Speed limits are designed for normal conditions, not icy bridges or frost-covered highways. Review these basic driving safety measures during a team meeting:
- Slow down on wet, icy or snowy pavement
- Triple your following distance on snow or ice to allow more time to react
- Use extreme caution on bridges, ramps, overpasses and shaded areas; they freeze first
If your vehicle begins to slide, ease off the gas or brakes and steer in the direction of the skid until traction returns.
Share the Road
- Stay at least 200 feet behind snowplows
- Never crowd or pass a plow unless absolutely necessary
- Remember: plows travel slowly, make wide turns and may stop or exit the road suddenly
If You Become Stalled
- Stay with your vehicle and avoid overexertion (don’t try to push your vehicle)
- Make your vehicle visible with markers or interior dome lights
- Prevent carbon monoxide buildup: Keep the exhaust pipe clear and run the engine only intermittently
Download this mobile app and get real-time traffic updates from the Ohio Department of Transportation: OHGO | Hello Smart Traveler.
Learn more: Winter Safety for Drivers.
Smile for Every Mile
Through professional development, you can learn new skills, adapt to trends and master new technologies. You also can learn to understand and recognize hazards, including issues related to impairment in the workplace and behind the wheel. The more you learn, the better equipped you are to report issues and control risks.
That’s why reasonable suspicion training is essential to any strong drug-free workplace program. We’d like to invite you to join us for a free online webinar Thursday, Feb. 12: Keeping Employees Safe – Reasonable Suspicion Training & DOT Clearinghouse Insights.
Drug Recognition Expert Jorge Leal will share the most common mistakes employers make in workplace drug and alcohol testing – and how to avoid them. You’ll also gain valuable insights into the DOT Clearinghouse and what every employer needs to know to stay compliant and protect their workforce.
The discussion will touch on a number of safety issues, including how to:
- Check on new hires’ fitness for duty
- Identify drivers with positive drug/alcohol tests
- Use a centralized database for reporting and checking on violations
Leal will walk you through ideas that can lead to a reduction in costs at your workplace, boost productivity and help you create a stronger safety culture.
Game Changer
The latest National Safety Council data is encouraging: Alcohol‑impaired driving deaths dropped 7.6% in 2023, marking the second consecutive year of improvement. And while alcohol‑related fatalities made up 48% of all traffic deaths in 1982, they’ve fallen to 30% today.
Still, more than 12,000 people lost their lives in alcohol‑impaired crashes last year — a reminder that prevention efforts remain as critical as ever.
As we approach one of the year’s biggest unofficial holidays — the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 8 — it’s the perfect time to help employees and their families celebrate safely.
Plan Ahead
If you’re going out to watch the game with coworkers or friends, start with this simple message: Plan your safe ride home.
Safe choices include:
- Appointing a designated driver
- Calling a taxi or booking a rideshare
- Sharing your plan with friends so everyone is accountable
Find more prevention tools and messaging from the Ohio Traffic Safety Office: Impaired Driving.
Tips for Hosts
If you’re throwing a watch party, create an environment that supports responsible choices.
Offer non‑alcoholic drink options:
Be sure everyone has arranged for a safe ride home before kickoff.
Score First
Share Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk resources from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:
- Drunk‑driving talking points (English & Spanish)
- Big‑game social graphics (English & Spanish)
- Current facts on alcohol‑impaired driving
Model Safe Choices
Small shifts in driving behavior can prevent unintended consequences. Let others know the steps you’re taking to stay focused and get home safely. When you demonstrate safer habits, you inspire those around you to do the same — and strengthen safety on Ohio roads.