Alex Wojno

Preston

SPEA V 160

January 31, 2011

Teenage Driving

Importance

Teenagers across the nation are getting close to complete freedom to operate a car usually

around age 16. State laws on when teenagers can get their license differ, but the statistics on

teenage driving and accidents do not. Drivers that are between the age of 16 and 19 are four times

more likely than the average driver to get into an accident. 4 Factors such as little driving

experience, lack of skill, driving at night, risk taking behaviors, and alcohol and drug intoxication

are some of the many things that contribute to a higher rate of accidents in teenagers. The chart

below was taken from a report by the Center for Disease Control and shows what percent of the

amount of fatal accidents by all causes resulted in by age group.

Motor vehicle crash deaths as a percent of deaths from all causes by gender and age, 2004
Male Female Total*
Motor
vehicle Motor vehicle Motor vehicle
Age deaths All deaths % deaths All deaths % deaths All deaths %
<5 327 18,367 2 306 14,354 2 633 32,721 2
5-9 343 1,645 21 271 1,243 22 614 2,888 21
10- 232 1,119 21 166 773 21 398 1,892 21
12
13- 578 2,226 26 399 1,355 29 977 3,581 27
15
16- 1,264 3,364 38 721 1,588 46 1,985 4,922 40
17
18- 1,854 5,323 35 828 1,934 43 2,683 7,257 37
19
20- 4,335 14,909 29 1,398 4,806 29 5,733 19,715 29
24
25- 2,853 13,554 21 932 5,217 18 3,786 18,771 20
29
30- 12,713 253,045 5 4,966 153,274 3 17,680 406,319 4
59
60- 1,977 183,087 1 1,151 132,431 1 3,128 315,518 1
69
≥ 70 2,967 684,755 <1 2,249 898,930 <1 5,219 1,583,685 <1
 *Total includes other and/or unknowns
NOTE: Data on motor vehicle crashes come from FARS. Data on other causes
of death come from US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Although some states have changed their laws to account for these statistics, the majority of

states either have not adjusted the law to make a large difference or have not adjusted them at all.

The federal government has left it up to individual states to choose how to handle the issue. As a

result, if something is to be done to effectively change these statistics, it will need to be done with

a collaborative effort by a large portion of states.

Background

Driver’s licenses were first required to obtain a drivers license in order to operate a car in

1913. Due to the amount of accidents and costs New Jersey required all drivers to pass an

examination before acquiring a state issued license. 3 Although the age at which one can obtain a

drivers license has not changed drastically in the time that the United States has been issuing

them, America is behind the average age across the world. It wasn’t until the mid 1990’s that

states began changing laws and bringing the nations average closer to the international range. 2

Many studies and reports have been published about the danger that young drivers pose

to themselves and others when they get on the road unsupervised. Many recent reports collect

information from auto insurance companies who the accidents are reported too. All states have

some form of Graduated Drivers Licensing (GDL), which requires an intermediate or permit

stage. However the requirements can change drastically state to state. Expert’s support keeping

the permit age at around 15, but raising the age required to have a GDL to around 17.

Underlying Causes

Changing the age to obtain a license will not automatically bring the amount of accidents

in the 16-19 age group into a normal range. Some kids never get very much experience driving

when they are in their permit stage. Others could simply drive recklessly because they are

rebellious. More may break their state laws and do something that takes away from driving safely
like text or have more than the allowed people in their car. These other factors play an important

role in amount of accidents teenagers can get in. The state government needs to implement more

thorough testing and requirements such as time in the car with a licensed driver. Parents also play

a key role in taking responsibility to make sure that their children are actually learning to drive

with them as much as possible.

Policy Options

Over the years many states have tested out new laws or changed them all together. Some

states have shown to be very proactive in the adjustment of the driving age and others not. There

are public interest groups that consistently lobby to politicians in support or against a change.

There have been many ideas in these discussions and debates on how to curb the problem of

teenage driver accidents. The most popular and often most talked about is simply raising the age

at which a citizen can get a permit. Others push to lengthen the time a new driver must have his

or her permit before they obtain a license. This could be done by either lowering the age where a

person can get their permit or raising the age where they can get their license. Some experts

believe mandating driving classes which instruct and demonstrate driving techniques and are paid

for by the state government would help reduce accidents. There are also times that could be

implemented that only allow new drivers to drive during the day unless they are coming from

work. 2 Policies about how many people are allowed in a new driver’s car and what their

relationship to the driver is could also play a crucial role in decreasing the amount of accidents.

Another solution is to require a specific amount of time with a trained professional in a car under

different simulated weather conditions. Any way you look at the issue there are many different

ways and solutions to go about solving it.

Solution

In order to effectively change the amount of accidents teenagers cause it will require

compromise and cooperation for lawmakers and parents. By allowing teenagers to get a permit at

age 15 and changing the law to age 17 or 17 and 6 months for a full license, it will allow new and
young drivers to get more time behind the wheel of a car and learn how to better control and

handle it. Also a requirement that would extend the minimum amount of time that is required for

a permit driver to engage in supervised driving by a family member above 21. Families with

lower income may not be able to afford paying for private classes in order to teach their child to

drive. These suggestions would not affect people monetarily, but may save them money in the

future of preventing accidents. If state governments and parents of new drivers work together

passed these regulations, it would just be a matter of information. Making sure that parents and

teenagers understand the danger and facts of teenage driving there should be a decrease in the

amount of accidents.
Works Cited

1. Baker SP, Chen L, Li G. Nationwide review of graduated driver licensing. Washington (DC):
AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety; 2007.
http://www.aaafoundation.org/pdf/nationwidereviewofgdl.pdf

2. Fatality facts: teenagers 2005. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Arlington (VA):
The Institute; 2006. www.iihs.org/research/fatality_facts/teenagers.html

3. New York’s Auto Exports Increase. The New York Times. 1913.
http://www.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?
_r=1&res=9B07E5DF113CE633A25757C1A9619C946296D6CF

4. Teen Drivers: Fact Sheet. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 2010.
http://www.cdc.gov/Motorvehiclesafety/teen_drivers/teendrivers_factsheet.html