Tennessee Highway Safety Office Joins NASCAR Star Ross Chastain for Traffic Safety Event

On Thursday, May 29, the Tennessee Highway Safety Office (THSO), a division of the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, joined NASCAR driver Ross Chastain for a traffic safety event, reminding attendees to “Use Your Melon” and never drink and drive. This event was exclusive for students at Nashville Auto-Diesel College to help increase traffic safety education and promote safe driving behaviors.

“Education is vital to improve the safety on our roadways,” said THSO Director Buddy Lewis. “We are grateful to have such strong partnerships to show young drivers that we care about their safety. Our goal is to reduce traffic crashes, injuries, and fatalities by increasing our presence in the community and offering resources to support traffic safety education.”

According to Tennessee’s Integrated Traffic Analysis Network (TITAN), there were 6,022 traffic crashes statewide involving a drunk driver in 2024. Nearly 47 percent of drunk drivers were ages 20 – 34. During the event, Ross Chastain spoke to students about the dangers of drunk driving to help promote safe driving behaviors.

Accompanying Ross Chastain was the 2025 Georgia Watermelon Ambassador Katelyn Lindsay from Locust Grove, Ga., who handed out free watermelon slices to participants. Traffic safety partners showcased vehicle displays, educational resources, and hands-on activities to teach driver safety. Partners included Tennessee Highway Patrol, Tennessee Department of Transportation, Nashville Department of Transportation, Metro-Nashville Police Department, Alliance Highway Safety, Reduce TN Crashes, Skyline Medical Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Tennessee Trucking Foundation, and Acceptance Insurance.

For more information, please visit tntrafficsafety.org.