Teen Drivers
Sunday, February 19th, 2006
Driving experts say the biggest challenge for the new teen driver is simply surviving those first, all-important years behind the wheel.
Although the number of traffic deaths and injuries has steadily declined over the past decade, road crashes remain the leading cause of death for young people in Canada.
Across North America, governments, the insurance industry and parents are looking for ways to keep young drivers safe on the road.
Measures have gone beyond graduated licence programs to tracking devices in cars that allow parents to monitor the speed and whereabouts of their teen drivers, to legislation being considered in Ontario that would deny licences to teens who drop out of high school before the age of 18.
Joe Sears of New Brunswick, a veteran instructor with Young Drivers of Canada, says he thinks it’s time for Canadian governments to demand more frequent and rigorous driver examinations.
“The idea of testing somebody at 16 and not retesting them again until they’re in their 80s and someone has written a complaint about them, that’s just crazy,” Sears says.
“I would much rather see something where we have to retest every five years. Imagine what that would do to the Canadian fatality and crash statistics and our insurance rates if everyone in the country had to be retested every five years.” According to Transport Canada’s most recent traffic collision statistics, drivers aged 16 - 24 accounted for 22.6 per cent of driver fatalities and almost 25 per cent of driver serious injuries, despite the fact that young drivers represent only 13 per cent of licensed drivers.
In the United States, a recent study of teen driving by the American Automobile Association found that in the last decade, drivers aged 15 to 17 were involved in accidents that killed 30,917 people.
Nearly two-thirds of the victims were the passengers of young drivers, or pedestrians, or victims in other vehicles.
Scott Marshall, director of training for Young Drivers of Canada, the largest driver training program in Canada, says there are signs that not as many 16-year-olds have been rushing out to get their licences in recent years.
Marshall says that particularly in urban areas, teens appear to be delaying beginner licences because of time and money constraints.
“We’re not seeing as many 16-year-olds as we used to,” Marshall says.
“A lot of it has to with insurance. I think the feeling was, `Why bother getting my licence when I can’t afford the insurance.’ But now that rates are coming down, I think that will change.”
Experts say educating teen drivers has to focus on teaching them to assess potential risks, so they learn not to take corners too fast, travel too close to the vehicle in front of them and what to watch out for as they approach intersections.
It’s especially important since driving in today’s busy cities and on major highways is becoming more demanding.
“The complexity of today’s driving environment means that drivers need enhanced skills to deal with challenging situations,” says John Williamson, director of the Drive for Life training program that teaches defensive driving on simulators.
“Experience is one of the most important factors in driving.”
Marshall says one of the challenges with teen drivers is teaching them how to focus. He says young drivers have to learn to turn off their cell phones and i-pods before they head onto the road.
“The sooner they start learning good habits, the better,” he says.
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