Delaying driver’s license could save lives

Nowadays driving on the freeway and even on quiet residential
streets can be like a frightening roller coaster ride. Children as
young as 15 are learning to operate a vehicle. And if all goes
according to plan they can obtain their driver’s license at
the youthful age of 16.

What makes lawmakers think that, at the age of 16, teenagers are
capable of driving a car responsibly?

When I was 16 years old I couldn’t wait to get my license.
I felt unstoppable. I know exactly how it feels to get your car and
want to pick up your friends and take a joy ride, and I also know
that as a young driver I was reckless at times.

I know that I wasn’t mature enough to drive on my own, but
I was able to pass all my required tests with flying colors. So
according to the rules I was a competent driver.

Unfortunately, today I can’t help but be overwhelmed by
the many headlines regarding teens and fatal car accidents.

Grim statistics in a USA Today article show that
“16-year-olds are far worse drivers than 17-, 18- or
19-year-olds.”

When USA Today examined all of the deaths from car crashes in
2003 that involved 16-to-19-year-old drivers it resulted in
“… a death toll that tops that of any disease or injury for
teens. … And 16-year-old drivers were the riskiest of
all.”

Across the United States teenagers begin to plan their 16th
birthdays as diligently as they might their wedding days. They
start working, saving money, and some even begin to do better in
school, demonstrating to their parents just how responsible they
are.

All this to get a small laminated card indicating they are
officially fit to drive.

What makes us think that several hours of instructed driving
lessons, one multiple-choice test, and a 10-minute driving test are
the best indicators of an eligible driver?

I doubt that most young drivers contemplate the fact that they
are in control of a powerful machine with the ability to kill
themselves and other innocent individuals.

The truth of the matter is that driving is a privilege, not an
individual’s right.

I am not suggesting that we should increase the driving age to
21 and devastate every teenager. I am merely suggesting to increase
the age by just two years.

It’s not as if at the age of 18, you suddenly become the
best driver and never have accidents. But you are still two years
older, possibly out of the high school scene, perhaps more cautious
of your surroundings and more mature.

Although there are many older individuals who drive hazardously,
16-year-olds are more prone to being distracted by friends, music
and the urge to drive faster than the car next to them.

I understand that teenagers want to be independent and start
driving themselves to school and work and that increasing the
driving age may be inconvenient.

But isn’t it a lot more inconvenient to have to deal with
a broken arm or leg, or even a possible death?

Unlike many teenagers, I got my license at the age of 17. To
many that would be a death sentence. However, I did not die or lose
all my friends. I was a bit more experienced and I felt more
comfortable operating a car. It is not to say that I have not had
car accidents, but even with one extra year I was not as reckless
as I would have been at the age of 16.

By increasing the age to 18 we would decrease accidents and
reckless driving. We should not continue to stand unaffected by all
the injuries and deaths caused by teen driving.

Even if the enactment of this proposal could save just one life,
isn’t it worth it?

Matian is a fourth-year sociology student.