Teen Drivers
Motor vehicle-related
injuries are the biggest health threat to teenagers in the United States,
accounting for two out of five deaths among teens ages 16 to 19 (IIHS
2004b). More than 4,700 teens in this age group died in motor
vehicle crashes in 2001 (CDC 2004). In fact, drivers in this age group
are
four times more likely to crash per mile driven than older drivers (IIHS
2004b). Crash risk is particularly high during the first years that
teenagers are eligible to drive (IIHS 2004b). The presence of teen
passengers increases the crash risk for unsupervised teen drivers, and
the more passengers, the greater the risk (Chen et al. 2000). In 2001,
fatal and nonfatal crashes involving drivers ages 15 to 20 cost Americans
$40.8 billion (NHTSA 2003d).
Research
Young drivers and fatal alcohol-related
motor
vehicle crashes, 1982–2001 —
CDC researchers found that between 1982 and
2001,the rate of alcohol-related fatal crashes among drivers ages16 to
20 years decreased almost 60%, suggesting that prevention measures
specific to this age group have been effective. However, drinking and
driving remains a serious public health problem for drivers of all ages
(CDC 2002).
Do parents influence teen driving
behavior? Young inexperienced drivers intervention study —
CDC scientists
collaborated with the National Institutes of Health to evaluate a brief
intervention with parents and teens designed to increase parental
restrictions of teen driving privileges. Results showed that
intervention parents reported more driving rules, restricted driving,
limits for high-speed roads,
weekend night restrictions, and overall driving limits for their teens
than did parents in the control group (Simons-Morton, Haritos, and Beck
2004).
Graduated driver licensing —
Graduated driver licensing (GDL)
programs—restriction son young drivers that are lifted as they gain
driving experience and competence—are an effective strategy for promoting
safe development of driving skills. CDC supported research at the
Southern
California Injury Prevention Research Center in Los Angeles to examine
the effectiveness of GDL in California. Results from this study showed a
17% to 18% decrease in crash rates for drivers ages 16 to 17 after GDL
(Rice, Peek-Asa, and Kraus 2003).
Reducing motor vehicle crashes among young
drivers —
To address young driver issues, CDC helped fund and contributed
to a series of five research papers, published in a September 2002
supplement of Injury Prevention (Simons-Morton and Hartos 2002). The
articles review the current status of research on young drivers and make
a compelling case for GDL programs, which gradually introduce
young drivers into the driving population and are effective in reducing
the high risk of crashes among teenage drivers.
Symposium on Graduated
Driver Licensing: Documenting the Science of GDL —
CDC helped fund and
organize a recent symposium on the science of graduated driver licensing,
at which scientists documented the effectiveness of GDL programs, the
need for GDL program implementation, and the role of parents. As a result
of this symposium, the National Safety Council is supporting an annual
update of GDL research that will assess completed and ongoing
evaluations. CDC also contributed to a special edition of the Journal of
Safety Research (Lin 2003),a collection of 12 scientific papers and
other presentations that resulted from the GDL symposium.
