Youth driving laws for safety or discrimination

Editor’s Note: Student Union is written by students at Hampden Academy, Brewer High School, John Bapst Memorial High School, Old Town High School, MDI High School, Ashland Community High School and Schenck High School in East Millinocket. The weekly column is a joint effort among the schools, the Bangor Daily News and Acadia Hospital. This week’s column was written by a John Bapst Memorial High School student. Her adviser is Lynn Manion.

What is the leading cause of death among young people ages 15 to 24 in Maine and in the nation? No, it’s not AIDS. Not drinking overdoses, drugs, murder, or even suicide. It’s motor vehicle crashes. This is not a new figure, and the controversy has been in the process of being addressed for years. The questions remain: Are restrictions too harsh or too lenient on new drivers? Are police looking to protect teens, or simply pulling them over to get them off the road? Why are there so many rules and laws for teens, or, in reality, do adults have more restrictions? Is all this for teen safety or is it discrimination?

The secretary of state, Dan A. Gwadosky, says: “Nearly one young driver is killed each week in Maine, more than 60 young drivers are injured each week in Maine, and although 15- to 24-year-olds comprise 12.5 percent of all licensed drivers, they are involved in 25 percent of vehicle fatalities and 30 percent of all injuries.” The state says that driver inexperience and risky driving behavior are the main culprits, and that parental involvement has a significant impact on a young driver.

Tim Lavigne, 17, of John Bapst Memorial High School said: “A car full of kids always seems to be the problem.” He does not think that police discriminate against teen drivers, and national statistics seem to support Lavigne’s assertion. A chart that shows the percentage of fatal crashes by characteristics in 1998 depicts that crashes with vehicles with three or more occupants ended as fatalities 33 percent of the time with a 16-year-old driver, 26 percent with a 17-year-old driver, and 19 percent when the driver was 18.

One of the categories that was not specific simply stated: “Low Belt Use: Teenagers generally are less likely than adults to use safety belts.”

One-third of all deaths of 16- to 18-year-olds are caused by car accidents. One idea to lower this staggering statistic is a graduated licensing. Some examples of a graduated license are restricting night driving, limiting teen passengers, establishing zero tolerance for alcohol, raising the age for obtaining a license, and requiring a specific amount of supervised practice during the initial phase. Studies have shown that these factors have reduced the number of crashes in the United States, Canada and New Zealand, but only a few states have these laws.

Another possible driving penalty is bad grades. In 18 states, 12 of them in the South, dropping out of high school means getting a license revoked.

On Dec. 2, 2002, WLBZ Channel 2 reported that every 10 days there is a teen death in Maine, and that speed, alcohol and inattention are the main culprits. They also gave the staggering statistic that there had been 46 teen deaths in 2002 so far, and the year wasn’t over.

The Legislative Youth Authority Council is a committee of students trying to make the roads safer. Some of the LYAC ideas include giving teens a curfew, and possibly moving the driving age from 16 to 17 years old.

Cody Holyoke, 17, a senior at John Bapst, said, “I understand the motivation for passing such laws, and I would feel a little restricted, but I think that it could cut down on a lot of teen accidents and deaths.” Responding to this, Tyler Yeo, 15, also of John Bapst, said, “No teenager really cares about the real facts, a lot of kids do drive fast and a lot aren’t mature enough to get their license. Every kid wants to drive by the time they’re 12; it’s bad enough to wait until they’re 16 let alone 17.”

Maine laws have been changed recently, starting with the 90-day law in which new drivers cannot drive with other teens for the first three months of having their license, and the “provisional license” law, which says that if a major infraction occurs within the first two years of a teen having a license, it will be revoked. The duration depends on the infraction. The mission statement of the Bangor Police Department from its home page last updated April 10, 2001, says: “The Bangor Police Department exists for the purpose of providing an enhanced level of safety in our community, protecting the rights guaranteed to all people by the Constitution, and improving the quality of life of each citizen.”

The number one task right now of lawmakers and police alike is to lower the number of fatal teen crashes, not just in Maine, but around the United States and the world.