The national Governors Highway Safety Association is recommending that all states extend junior driving restrictions until age 21.
In a study released Wednesday, the association said there was a 10 percent increase in 2015 in fatal traffic accidents for teenage drivers, the first increase since 2006. With the number of fatal accidents involving drivers between 18 and 20 years old higher than those involving younger drivers, the association recommends including older teenagers in the restricted group that requires more extensive training before they can obtain a full license.
The 38-page study, “Mission Not Accomplished: Teen Safe Driving, the Next Chapter,” said teen drivers were involved in 4,689 fatal accidents last year, up from 4,272 in 2014. Although fatal accidents involving teen drivers were down over a 10-year period, the decline was 51 percent for younger teens but only 40 percent for older teens.
To Pam Fischer, a New Jersey consultant who wrote the study, that indicates some young drivers may not be getting the amount of training they should. That’s why she recommended extending the graduated licensing requirement to age 21 in all states instead of 18, where it is everywhere except New Jersey, which has the graduated license for every new driver regardless of age.
“[Age limits] are just numbers,” said Ms. Fischer. “When you look at a teenager, we know scientifically they don’t have the maturity, the insight, the fully developed brain to make safe decisions.
(Click image for larger version)
“When we allow them to get a license with no restrictions, we’re really doing them a disservice and we’re not looking at the scientific evidence.”
Details on graduated license requirements vary from state to state, but in Pennsylvania teens can receive a learner’s permit at age 16. After six months, they can get a junior license if they complete 65 hours of driving, including 10 hours of night driving and five hours in inclement weather, and pass written and on-road exams.
The junior license prevents them from driving between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. and limits the number of passengers they can have in the vehicle. If they complete a year with no accidents or traffic violations, they can get a full license.
But in Pennsylvania and most other states, none of those steps is required if they apply for a learner’s permit at age 18. That means at age 18, if a driver can pass the test, they can receive a full license regardless of how much training they have received.
The recommendation from the Governors Association encourages all states to adopt the graduated license procedure through at least age 21.
Part of the reason the number of fatalities has increased is because the number of drivers is on the rise again after dropping off during the economic recession, Ms. Fischer said. But she says that’s only one reason.
“We know GDL is working for young kids, but we can see by looking at the numbers that older teenagers just aren’t ready [for a full license] if they haven’t had the training,” she said.
Tim Rogers, who as president of the Rogers Driving School in Ross is involved in training 700 to 800 drivers a year, said he would support extending junior licenses to older teens.
“If the state sees a need for 65 hours of driving before a 16-year-old can get a license, I’m not sure why that goes away with age,” he said.
Ms. Fischer, who has more than 25 years of experience in teen driver safety, said states made substantial improvements in driver license requirements from about 1990 to about 2012, when Pennsylvania made the last change to limit the number of passengers in the vehicle with a junior driver. But since then, she said, there has been “GDL fatigue.”
Ms. Fischer expects her recommendation to “raise some eyebrows,” but the Governors Association supports her conclusions. She also called for spreading ideas such as a Pennsylvania program in which the state transportation secretary sends a personal letter to junior drivers who receive traffic citations, warning that additional violations could cause them to lose their license.
PennDOT said it had no comment on the national report but spokesman Rich Kirkpatrick said in an email the state has seen “dramatic results” from previous changes in licensing requirements.
First Published: October 13, 2016, 4:10 a.m.
