Annual Report

2025 DRIVE SMART Virginia Annual Report

The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles shows that 825 deaths occurred on Virginia’s roadways in 2025, a decrease of almost 11% from the previous year. There are various causes for motor vehicle crashes and most of them are preventable. Distractions such as talking or texting on cell phones, reading, or reaching for an object are attributed to 80% of all crashes and 65% of all near-crashes recently studied by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. DRIVE SMART Virginia has been a pioneer in the fight against distracted driving. DRIVE SMART reaches out to employers, associations and the general public statewide to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving in an effort to reduce the number of crashes attributed to distracting behaviors.

DSV also hosted the 12th Annual Distracted Driving Summit on August 6-7 in Williamsburg, Virginia. There were 250 in-person attendees and with 30 exhibits on site as well. Sessions related to vulnerable road users, corporate and community strategies, law enforcement, and research and technology were presented by expert speakers from across the country.

In addition to distractions, age can also play a factor in motor vehicle crashes. Young and inexperienced drivers are at a high risk of being involved in crashes. Sadly, 33 teen drivers died on Virginia’s roadways in 2025. DRIVE SMART Virginia has been traveling around Virginia with a distracted driving simulator and other hands-on educational activities for high school students. DRIVE SMART brought programming into 28 high schools across Virginia, reaching over 6,000 teens in 2025 with the interactive educational experience. In addition, DRIVE SMART partnered with the I-66 Express Mobility Partners to bring four engaging driver’s education assemblies to Fairfax and Prince William Counties with the ThinkFast Interactive program.

Another cause of car crashes involves pedestrians and bicyclists. In 2025, 153 (138 pedestrians, 15 bicyclists) people died walking or cycling on Virginia roadways. DRIVE SMART VIRGINIA continued our efforts to help improve understanding and create awareness of ways to reduce these roadway injuries and fatalities by holding an annual Bicycle and Pedestrian Awareness month in October to align with NHTSA’s pedestrian safety month. During this month, companies, organizations, and individuals were asked to use our online toolkit of social media posts, newsletter articles, email blasts, posters, and brochures in to spread the word about sharing the road with bicyclists and pedestrians with our See and Be Seen messaging and graphics.

One of the easiest ways to prevent injuries and fatalities involving a motor vehicle is using a seatbelt. Virginia DMV statistics show death rates are 8 times higher when an occupant is not buckled or restrained. DRIVE SMART is involved in the national Click It or Ticket mobilization, providing materials and outreach to Virginia’s drivers related to buckling up. Our “Love Clicks” message reminds drivers to buckle up for their loved ones. Virginia saw 277 unrestrained occupant fatalities in 2025 and one of the lowest usage rates in the country at 81%, according to 2024 observational surveys (2025 not yet released).

Another preventable and tragic cause of traffic crashes and fatalities is impaired driving. For the 10th year, DRIVE SMART Virginia brought the Who’s Your Driver program to Virginia racing fans. This program targets racing fans and asks them to pledge to have a designated driver if they are going to drink. Who’s Your Driver includes signage, social media, and digital programming. For the first time, we partnered with NASCAR drivers Jeb Burton and Ross Chastain to help amplify the Who’s Your Driver messaging.

In 2025, DRIVE SMART Virginia continued to deliver the What’s Your Gameplan program to sports fans. Similar to the Who’s Your Driver program, What’s Your Gameplan asks fans to have a sober driver and buckle up. The What’s Your Gameplan program partnered with Virginia Tech, Old Dominion University, and Virginia Union University football programs as well as The Richmond Flying Squirrels minor league baseball to deliver safety messaging. The program was delivered through digital means and game/stadium signage.

Protecting our first responders and roadside workers is of tremendous importance. As such, DRIVE SMART expanded our programing in 2025 to include a move over awareness campaign. This campaign included new digital graphics, a paid radio PSA campaign in northern Virginia, and five digital billboards in Richmond and Tidewater areas. The program also provided TIMS training manuals and support for several TIMS training workshops in Virginia in 2025.

Below is a snapshot of DRIVE SMART Virginia’s metrics for 2025 programming in Virginia:

  • Received over 800 orders and shipped 90,000 materials from our free online store – includes brochures, posters, yard signs, etc.
  • Saw over 44,000 website users, including over 2,500 downloads of toolkit resources.
  • Participated in 104 community and workplace events reaching over 154,000 people in-person.
  • Reached over 60,000 people through social media followers and had over 3 million impressions/views on social media channels.
  • Reached over 5 million sports fans with What’s Your GamePlan and Who’s Your Driver messaging.
  • Reached over 14,000 contacts through regular e-newsletters and communications.
  • Featured in 40 media sources such as TV, newspapers, etc.

2025 Financial Snapshot:

Total Revenue: $2,014,794
Program Expenses: $1,612,521
Administrative Expenses: $152,121
Fundraising: $1,330
Total Expenses: $1,765,972