Featured Article: This article originally appeared in the November 2002 issue of Welcome Home. Article Copyright 2002 Cheryl-Ann Hughes. Reproduction or dissemination of this work -- or any part of it -- is expressly forbidden without the written consent of the author.

Health and Safety
Teen Driving

By Cheryl-Ann Hughes

Like most parents, I’ve alternately looked forwarded to and dreaded the day when my teenagers would get their driver’s licenses. I know it’s a rite of passage that brings some degree of longed-for independence, and I’m happy for my kids. On the other hand, I can’t help but worry every time one of my children picks up the keys and heads for the door. For me, it’s a balancing act that juxtaposes all the faith I have in my children against the knowledge that kids make mistakes every day. And mistakes made while driving can be deadly.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) web site on young drivers, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for fifteen- to twenty-year-olds. As if to reinforce this fact, a recent report from the Insurance Information Institute states that the risk of a crash per mile driven is four times greater for teens than for older drivers. These are just two of a long list of statistics that seems to go on forever. The message is generally the same: there is a lot to be concerned about when it comes to teen drivers.

For those of us living in metropolitan areas, traffic congestion, aggressive driving behavior (often by adults), and continuous road repairs are some of the hazards our children face. In these situations, the lack of both maturity and experience can be a frightening combination. Megan Neville, a sixteen-year-old honors student from Vienna, Virginia, had her license for a little over four months when the car she was driving in with her sister was hit by a driver who failed to stop at an intersection. Although their car was totaled, Megan and her sister walked away relatively unscathed. Megan’s mother, however, knows that the situation could have been much worse. “I can’t even think what would have happened if Megan had been further out into the intersection,” says Allison Neville. “As it was, the whole front part of the car was just torn off.”

The police investigating the accident were quick to tell Megan’s parents that the scene corroborated Megan’s version of the facts even though the other driver insisted he had come to a stop at the intersection as required. But Megan’s mom still wonders if perhaps a little more experience would have enabled Megan to recognize that the driver was not going to stop, thereby averting the accident altogether.

Graduated Licensing Programs

Recognizing the fact that lack of experience is a factor in numerous accidents each year, thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have passed legislation instituting graduated licensing programs (GDLs). These programs grant driving privileges gradually, usually by extending the amount of required practice time, which forces teens to gain more experience before obtaining an unrestricted driver’s license. Although the laws vary from state to state, the idea behind all these programs is the same: more experience will result in fewer fatalities.

“In addition, many states have put in place restrictions on both nighttime driving and the number of passengers a newly licensed driver may transport,” says Justin McNaul, spokesperson for AAA Mid-Atlantic. These restrictions are in response to a growing body of re-search that shows that a disproportion-ate number of accidents occur after midnight or when there are more than two teenage passengers in a car. In fact, studies have shown that when there are three or more teenage passengers, crash rates increase fourfold.

McNaul stresses that one big factor some parents may overlook is the importance of setting up family rules about driving. “In all states, children do not have full control over their driving licenses until the age of eighteen,” McNaul says. “Parents can set those rules however they want.”

The ability to delay or restrict a child’s driving--or rescind a driver’s license altogether if the child does not drive responsibly--gives parents considerable clout in enforcing driving rules set at home. McNaul recommends that parents set up a contractual agreement that covers parental rules. With a codified agreement, parents can stipulate the consequences that will occur if a child breaks parental rules so that all parties understand the gravity of the situation.

At least one recent study reinforces the idea of placing restrictions on children’s driving over and above those put in place by the state. Dr. Jessica Hartos, a research fellow at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) led a study to determine whether risky driving characteristics in children differed according to parenting styles. Three hundred sixteen- and seventeen-year-old children in southern Maryland were asked to respond to a survey regarding their driving behavior and how restrictive their parents were regarding their driving. The students were asked about risky behavior they exhibit while driving, including such things as speeding, running red lights, and tailgating. Further questions asked about such parental restrictions as rules about where children were allowed to drive, with whom they could drive, how late the drivers were allowed to stay out, and how many other passengers could be in the car they were driving. The amount of parental monitoring was also factored into the questionnaire.

The results? Students considered to display high-risk behavior were two times more likely to report low parental restrictions and three times more likely to report low parent monitoring. “While not a cause-and-effect study,” says Dr. Hartos, “all data points to the fact that parents who keep track of kids’ driving are more likely to have kids who report less risky behavior.”

Parents Need to Set Limits

Many parents do put extra restrictions on their teen drivers. The laws vary from state to state.
Until 2001, the minimum age for full driving privileges in New Jersey was seventeen. Mary Pat Cullen’s eighteen-year- old son T.K. has had his driver’s license for over a year. However, this mother of two from Deptford, New Jersey, continues to be concerned about the risks involved with teen driving. “The statistics do make me worry,” she says. “Every time there’s an article in the newspaper, I make sure T.K. reads it.”

Cullen also reminds T.K. often of the numerous responsibilities involved in driving. “I try to get it into his head that he is responsible for all the lives of the other people in his car.” In addition, because of the high level of traffic in her suburban area, Ms. Cullen places certain limits on where T.K. is allowed to drive. “Lots of kids are allowed to drive wherever they want,” she says. “I want him to stay within a thirty-mile radius of home. And I don’t like him to have more than two other kids in the car with him.”

In less urbanized parts of the country, parents’ concerns are about things other than high traffic volume. In the state of New York, teens can get a driver’s permit at the age of sixteen after taking and passing a brief test. The state’s only other requirements before licensure are a five-hour safety course and a road driving test. (Driving laws in New York City and Long Island are different from those in the rest of New York.) After a teen receives a driving license, the state imposes a 9 p.m. curfew, but beyond that, New York has few other restrictions.

Laurie Murphy lives in Hamilton, New York, a small town about an hour from Syracuse. As the mother of four children, two of whom are of driving age, Murphy wanted her teens to have a longer period of driving experience before they received their licenses. “I made them drive a lot for about five or six months before I let them apply for their permanent license,” she says. “Also, I monitored their snow driving-- even after they got their licenses--and made them drive with me in the snow to become more used to it.”

Kathy Steward, another mother of four from Hamilton, New York, put her own limits on her newly licensed drivers. “I limited who my kids could drive with.” Steward also insists that her teens call her when they arrive at their destination and with any change in their plans so she always has an idea of where they are and whom they are with.

“We’ve also stressed the drinking and driving thing,” she says. “Our kids know we will come and pick them up, no questions or hassle--unless someone’s health and safety are an immediate issue--regardless of who is driving or who is the designated driver at any time.”

There’s a lot of comfort in talking to other parents about teen driving. It’s reassuring to know that all of us are struggling to balance safety with independence. And I’m grateful to lawmakers who are finally recognizing the need for responsible teen-driving legislation. These laws give parents another tool to help our children safely negotiate the early driving years. But I still worry every time my kids hit the road. Then I take a deep breath, say a prayer and wait for them to come home again.

For More Information

• State departments of motor vehicles offer information to parents on how to best prepare a child for driving. • The Automobile Association of America has a handbook and video available for sale called “Teaching Your Teens to Drive.” • Safe Young Drivers: a guide for parents and teens by Phil Berardelli is a 176-page handbook. Detailed instructions guide parents and teens through ten lessons, building skills gradually and providing plenty of practice. ($15 plus $3.50 s&h; http://www.safeyoungdrivers.com/.)

• Teendriving.com was started in 1994 by fifteen-year-old Ryan Buckholz. The site contains tips to teens about various driving situations, such as driving while tired or in bad weather. Readers are also asked to send in any tips they feel would be helpful. • Drivehomesafe.com was started in August 2000 by James and Felisa Winfield, parents of two teenage boys. This site provides teen-driving guidelines, instruction, helpful hints, statistics, articles and a newsletter.

See more information about parenting teens.

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