Education a good road for young drivers

By the Journal Editorial Board | Friday, September 12, 2008

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Teen drivers — you’ve got to love to hate them. They seem less aware and more willing to take chances. And yes, they’re more likely to be involved in accidents — injury accidents and fatalities.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (a research group funded by the auto industry) would like to see teen drivers off the road until they’re 17 or 18, which would, they say, bring the number of fatalities down. They are now pitching the idea to the states.

How could it not bring the numbers down? But does it make sense?

If the intent is to reduce accidents, there’s a good possibility the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety could find many other groups to discriminate against based on age, driving habits or proclivity to find themselves in dangerous driving situations.

Still, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,  motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers and that’s a hard fact to ignore. In 2005, more than 4,500 teens died from  motor vehicle crashes.

Teen drivers have it tough. The numbers are against them; it’s dangerous on the roads and they’re part of the problem. And it’s not strictly age that puts them at a disadvantage — additional risk factors are male drivers, friends in the car and drivers just licensed. And then there’s alcohol, and failure to wear seatbelts, cell phones, iPods, radios — some of the same issues many drivers face, well beyond teen years.

A more practical approach to quickly addressing the issues revolving around teen drivers is education — early intervention to teach them how to make better choices and drive smarter. So we were glad to see the program “Alive at 25” running in Rapid City. The program teaches young drivers and soon-to-be drivers ages 14 to 24 safe driving habits. It should play a real role in keep young drivers on the road and out of the hospital.

So far, either voluntarily or by court order, 291 people have gone through the course. Those ordered by the court have been sent for careless driving, speeding and failure to yield.

A safe-driving program makes good sense and is a better avenue to modify teen driving than by simply taking young drivers off the road. Teens are notoriously “bad” drivers — they’re less likely to worry about consequences and more likely to take risks. But the good news is these young drivers haven’t had the opportunity to make the incredibly poor decisions many older drivers have —  alcohol, drugs etc. — and we’d hope they don’t get the chance. This program should help them make better decisions while behind the wheel   today and in the future.

Alive at 25 is a new program (learn more: southdakotasafetycouncil.org) that looks like it has real potential. And, maybe after the teens get through it, adult drivers can give it a try? There are plenty who could use it.