Teen Driving: The jury’s still out

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Although my son is quite a ways from giving me a head full of grays, I have nephews who are quickly leaving their tween years and getting pretty antsy to get behind the wheel of a car. Not only are their folks losing sleep but so am I…. Don’t get me wrong my boys are very responsible but I am stressing because they’ll be on the road with many of those ‘other’ young drivers, who get behind the wheel everyday with a devil-may-care ‘tude that could send chills up your spine. But does getting a license at a later age make you a better driver? 

 

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently took aim at teen drivers. The group is calling on states to raise the drivers license age to now 17 or 18 years old. What’s their drive? More than 5,000 teens die each year from auto crashes, not a small number. The group claims that according to their research, simply put, raising the age limit to drive saves lives. The researchers also claim that in New Jersey, the age for obtaining a drivers license is 17 and that the overall crash rate for kids in this state is considerably less. Jersey officials are also thinking about extending young driver permits from 6 to 12 months. The powers that be in states like Delaware for example, have chosen to refrain from raising the drivers license age and instead have opted to get tough by putting in place stricter driving curfews, expanding supervised driving time and banning cell phone use while behind the wheel. Still in Europe and Australia driving ages are higher and teen driving fatalities are lower.

 

Listen, you get no argument from me.  My nephews are typical tweens—cell phone and texting lovers, these are distractions that weren’t around when I was learning how to drive. Yet, it’s diversions like these that make it difficult for young folks to keep their eyes on the road. Whenever I see a young person behind the wheel, I’ll admit, I open my eyes just a little wider, my posture straightens up just a little more and my ‘Spidey’ senses become just a little keener. Are kids generally too cocky when they first get a taste of the open road? I’d hate to make a blanket statement…but…. What’s your take?

 

 

--Car Chick