I've been dealing with the challenge of a teen driver. Wow! What a challenge it is. I am all for young people having responsibilities and independence, but it is very difficult to help them understand that there are still limits.
The Governor of our state has assembled a task force to study and make recommendations regarding what can be done to keep teen drivers safe and alive. This is a very serious issue. In fact, this task force is supposed to report back to the Governor by the end of March.
So far this year in this state, there have been seven fatalities involving teen drivers. This compares to 15 in all of 2007. This is very scary when you consider that we are just in the beginning of March.
There have already been several recommendations. One is to suspend the teen's license for a period of time if cited for a moving violation. Another is to require parents to receive some type of driver education if your teen driver gets a ticket.
I was very surprised to learn that in some states the age for a teen to get a drivers license is 14 years old! What about your state? Is teen driving a hot topic where you live? If so, what steps is your state government taking to help keep teen drivers safe?
Monday, March 10, 2008
Teen Drivers
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5 comments:
14 years old in some states?! Wow, that is definitely too young.
It's 16 years old in my province, and I think there are restrictions for the first 6 months.
Those teen death statistics are scary!!
In my state of Iowa - kids can get a temporary permit to drive with a parent at 14 years old. They can actually get a "school" permit to drive to school by themselves at 14 years old, too. They get their permanent driver's license at 16 years old after taking a drivers ed course and completing a written and driving exam. It's kind of scary - isn't it?
I haven't heard too much about it where I live, but I'm sure it's an issue. I see way too many teens abusing the privledge. And I can't stand it when I see them texting in the car.
I grew up in Alabama. There you got a learner's permit (parent/guardian required) at 15 and a real license at 16. However, you could get a motorcycle at 14 which always blew my mind--give someone younger a license to a vehicle that can be much more dangerous to the rider at that age?!
While I lived in Mississippi, there was discussion of a law that would allow teens at 16 to get a license but no other teens could ride in the car with them until they were 18. Until then, only people over the age of 18 could be passengers. That actually sounded like a really good idea, but I don't think it ever went anywhere.
Hi Wealthy_1,
My daughter tested for, and received, her driver's license a week and a half ago so teen drivers are on my mind as well.
Here in our state, teens can apply for their learner's permit at 15 if they are enrolled in a state-approved driver's ed course. Otherwise, the age for permits is 15-1/2. Our daughter participated in a fabulous driver's ed course. She applied for her permit less than a month after her 15th birthday.
Once the permit is issued, teens have to hold their permit for a full calendar year before they can test for their license. So, the very earliest they can test is 16 (if they took a course) or 16-1/2 (if they didn't). In addition, the child has to have signed driving logs proving no less than 50 hours of daytime driving and 10 hours of nighttime driving.
For the first 6 months after they get their license, the teen may not have any people under the age of 21 in the car (except for siblings). That means no friends for 6 months. The next 6 months, they may may only have one passenger under the age of 21 in the car (other than siblings). Cell phone use while operating a vehicle is against the law for new drivers (I think until 18 years old). Also, there's a curfew for 16-18 year olds. No driving between midnight and 5am unless they have signed documentation that they are driving for their job or a school activity.
Our daughter is an excellent driver and I believe that she'll prove to be a responsible driver. Still, her dad and I plan to impose our own "graduated" license plan. Right now, she only drives to nearby locations. We're talking about letting her drive herself to school one day a week but not on days when she has practice afterward. For the foreseeable future, she will not be driving herself to any social activities or sporting events -- they will come, in time.
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