In early July, Robert Wiese (above at left) – a traffic engineer with the Alabama Department of Transportation – served as a guest speaker at the 2026 Driver Education Summer Conference at Gulf Shores High School to share best practices for preparing drivers with driver’s education instructors attending the event from across the state.
[Above photo by ALDOT]
At the invitation of Jeremy Seamon, administrator of driver and traffic safety education for the Alabama State Department of Education, Wiese presented traffic engineering topics that directly affect today’s drivers, focusing on how speed correlates with crash severity; the importance of traffic signs and pavement markings in communicating with drivers; and why engineers choose modern intersection designs, such as roundabouts and Diverging Diamond Interchanges (DDIs), instead of traditional four-way stops or traffic signals. He also offered practical tips for teaching new drivers how to safely navigate DDIs as well.
“As our transportation system continues to evolve, driver’s education must evolve with it,” Wiese explained at the conference. “Every sign, pavement marking and intersection design has a purpose. When new drivers understand why roads are designed the way they are and how to navigate them, they become more confident and make better decisions, which helps keep everyone safe.”
He noted that modern intersection designs are becoming more common across Alabama because they improve traffic flow and can reduce serious crashes.
As a result, helping driver’s education instructors understand these designs can better prepare future generations of motorists before they get behind the wheel, Weise said.
Alabama DOT noted in a statement that participating in this driver education summit is one example of how agency employees give back to their communities by sharing their knowledge and expertise outside their daily responsibilities.
Across the country, state departments of transportation engage with a variety of outside events or conduct their own as part of safety-focused outreach efforts to younger generations.
For example, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation conducts an annual “Innovations Challenge” to engage students in a variety of transportation safety issues. The agency recently selected a team of students from Conestoga High School as the statewide winner of its 2026 Innovations Challenge, which tasked students with developing a concept for the use of artificial intelligence or AI in work zones to dramatically improve safety for work crews and drivers.
The New Mexico Department of Transportation recently celebrated the first graduates of its “Land of Enchantment Young Ambassadors” program – an initiative designed to empower high school students from across New Mexico to lead local beautification efforts.
And the Nevada Department of Transportation and Visit Carson City are inviting Nevada school children from kindergarten through 12th grade to participate in an active transportation safety art contest that will feature one winner’s art on a Carson City mural.
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