Wayne State ’s faculty, staff and students drive daily from all corners of metro Detroit to reach the main mid-town campus and with that comes the unwelcome hazard of traffic crashes.

        In the average eight-hour work day, there are 5,760 car accidents that result in 40 fatalities and 3,000 injuries in the , according to the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety. 

        That’s why the Wayne State University College of Engineering’s Transportation Research Group – through the Transportation Research Group and the Bioengineering Center – decided to host a Drive Safely to Wayne State campaign from Sept. 26-28. The campaign is designed to help make the daily commutes of students, staff and faculty safer and raise awareness on such driving issues as: Aggressive driving (road rage); distracted driving; drinking and driving and safety restraint systems.

          The three-day program will kick-off with an opening ceremony on Sept. 26 from 1-3 p.m. on Gullen Mall near the David Adamany Undergraduate Library on Wayne State ’s main campus in Detroit .  A number of dignitaries will be on hand including Wayne State ’s Senior Vice President and Provost Nancy Barrett and WJBK TV-2 Traffic Reporter Jackie Paige, who will emcee the ceremony. 

          The program will include numerous displays and activities. Among those will be:  computer displays, safety belt convincers, rollover convincers, a driving simulator, a car seat safety check, mocktails, and tons of information on crashes and other safety information. Prize drawings will also be held for students, faculty and staff. 

          Wayne State ’s Transportation Research Center and its Bioengineering Research Center,  both in the College of Engineering, are presenting the three-day campaign in conjunction with the Drive Safely to Work Week sponsored by the Michigan Network of Employers for Traffic Safety.