It kills more young Americans every year, more than double those killed on 9/11, and yet there is no formally declared war on this American problem. I am referring to teen deaths as a result of motor vehicle collisions. It is quite startling that so many young Americans die as a result of something that is so avoidable with proper training.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, although Americans between the ages of 15 and 24 represent only 14 percent of the U.S. population, they astonishingly account for much of the total motor vehicle injury costs — 30 percent, or $19 billion, among males and 28 percent, or $7 billion, among females. More importantly, the most at-risk drivers are teens driving with teenage passengers, and, even more so, newly licensed teens.
The CDC does offer its opinion as to how to help prevent teen motor vehicle related deaths, however, what they suggest puts younger drivers through prolonged periods of limited driving. For example, the CDC prefers the graduated driver licensing (GDL) programs that are tailored to address the high risks new drivers face by granting them learner’s permits followed by a provisional license that restricts unsupervised driving.
Two of the more well known imposed restrictions are the limits on nighttime driving and on total number of passengers. According to most studies, especially those provided by the CDC, the GDL system does seem to help deter teen driving related deaths.
However, even with the GDL in place, thousands of teens will still die each year as a result of driving. Obviously, there is no possible way to eradicate the problem, but there may be in fact a way to improve the level of driving of young people to make way for a generation of safer and smarter drivers.
Perhaps parents should take the initiative and enroll their teens in safety driver education courses. With a combination of the GDL issued by the state and parents taking proactive measures by putting their teens in driver education courses, they will provide their teens with the needed time to develop their driving skills. At the same time, it will help develop their actual real-time driving skills with state certified instructors.
Harkening back to high school, I recall my parents enrolling me in such a program, and I can personally say that the program helped develop my all-around good driving skills. I learned the proper way to maneuver vehicles, handle the steering wheel and be smart around high-volume accident areas, such as intersections. Simple things we think we do right, but often times do not.
These classes also help to lower insurance rates for young drivers — this is always a plus for individuals looking to save on his or her coverage.
Ultimately, for real comprehensive changes, parents will have to invest a great interest in making sure their teens are best prepared to be on the road.
Reach Joseph at joseph.hermiz@asu.edu.
