When a teenager passes the Colorado driving test, it’s a day of enormous pride for most parents – and gnawing anxiety.
Teenagers with new licenses enjoy the sense of freedom, but statistics paint a startling picture. Car crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers, and the most dangerous period is when a driver is least experienced. Figures show that 16-year-old drivers were involved in 957 fatal crashes that killed 1,111 people in 2004. Most of those deaths, 784, were 16-year-olds.
Many states, including Colorado, have been placing new restrictions on teen drivers, seeking to curb such distractions as cellphones and gabbing passengers. Phased in privileges are meant to diminish the frequency of speeding and driving errors.
The stakes are nail-biting. In Colorado, ninety-six 16- to 20-year-olds died in accidents in 2004. Eighty percent of teen passengers who died were riding with teen drivers.
A recent study by the John Hopkins University School of Public Health shows that graduated driver licensing programs reduce accidents involving 16-year-old drivers by an average 11 percent. The process typically gives young drivers time to gain experience through supervised driving and then restricted driving before fully independent driving.
As of May, 44 states have implemented some version of that. The study found that the most comprehensive programs – including a minimum three-month learner’s permit, limits on nighttime driving, a minimum of 30 hours of supervised driving and passenger restrictions – can reduce dangerous crashes as much as 21 percent.
Colorado has moved smartly to protect teen drivers. In 2004, the state raised the minimum learner’s permit age to 16 unless a driver completes an education course at 15, or a four-hour driver’s awareness course at 15 1/2. Instructional permits run for 12 months. In 2005, lawmakers prohibited teens from carrying passengers under 21 for the first six months of driving. They are limited to one passenger for the next six months.
We know that some new drivers are pouting over these strict laws, but delayed gratification is surely a blessing compared to the harrowing alternative.
