Georgia father educates teen drivers about tire safety after son's death
It's National Teen Driver Safety Week, and a Marietta father is working to make cars safer for young drivers after losing his son in a crash.
The Road Ready Foundation encourages drivers to check tire tread and pressure and inspect their tires for damage.
Founder Alex Bebiak lost his son Jackson in 2023. Jackson was a passenger in a car that hydroplaned and hit an 18-wheeler. Bebiak said the crash was caused by insufficient tire tread.
"We learned that the crash was due to lack of tire tread on the tires," Bebiak said.
The loss led his family to learn more about tire safety and identify an opportunity to educate teen drivers.
Bebiak now speaks at schools and driver's education programs across the country, encouraging young drivers to check their tires.
"We found that three out of ten teen drivers are actually driving on unsafe tires through programs we've done at local high schools by checking their tires," Bebiak said.
He said the foundation also found that 43% of teen drivers had never checked their tires or tread for safety. Three in 10 did not know what the tire pressure monitoring system warning light meant.
Tire Discounters is partnering with Road Ready to offer free tire checks for teens during National Teen Driver Safety Week.
