October 20, 2025, Durham, NC – Distracted and impaired driving are two of the leading risk factors for vehicle crashes in the United States, and young people are at particularly high risk for engaging in these unsafe behaviors. iRT developed the Plan My Ride program with the goal of preventing distracted and impaired driving to support young drivers in staying safe on the road.

A randomized controlled trial found that Plan My Ride is effective in improving young drivers’ attitudes and knowledge related to safe driving in the short- and longer-term. Findings from the evaluation were recently published in Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behavior.

About Plan My Ride

Instead of relying on scare tactics commonly used in safe driving education, Plan My Ride takes a science-backed, theory-driven approach to behavior change by teaching concrete, practical strategies to avoid impaired and distracted driving. The program is designed to match the learning preferences of teens and young adults using an interactive, web-based format.

In addition to seven engaging online lessons, Plan My Ride offers opportunities for young drivers to practice the skills they have learned in 360-degree virtual scenarios. They also receive four “booster” lessons via text or email at two, four, six, and eight weeks after finishing the main program. These short, follow-up modules are designed to reinforce key skills learned in the program and support long-term behavior change.

Watch our YouTube series or read our blog series on Plan My Ride to learn more about the content of the program.

Findings

As part of the randomized controlled trial, participants were assigned to either complete the Plan My Ride program or join a waitlist control group. Participants completed surveys at baseline, two weeks, and three months to assess their knowledge, attitudes, normative beliefs, self-efficacy, intentions, and behaviors related to safe driving.

The evaluation found that, at the two-week follow-up, participants who completed Plan My Ride showed increased knowledge about safe driving, improved attitudes about safe driving, and healthier, more realistic beliefs about how their peers engage in driving behaviors. Participants continued to exhibit these some of these positive changes at the three-month follow-up, indicating that Plan My Ride may be effective at improving safe driving attitudes, knowledge, and beliefs in the longer-term.

These findings and more were outlined in Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behavior in an article entitled, “A randomized controlled trial evaluating the impact of Plan My Ride, an interactive, web-based safe driving program for young drivers.” The article was authored by iRT Research Scientists Drs. Rebecca Stelter, Janis Kupersmidt, and Katie Stump as well as Dr. Allison Schmidt.

If you are interested in reading the full article, click here.