Teen Drivers

Updated August 2008

In 2005, 3,467 15-to 20-year-old drivers were killed and an additional 281,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes, according to NHTSA. Fatal injuries from car wrecks are the leading cause of death for teens between the ages of 13 and 19. The risk of crashing is especially high for teens during the first few years of licensure. Inexperience and immaturity make for risky driving behavior and increase the likelihood of a crash.  In the last 10 years, all states have changed their teen licensing procedures. Many states have worked to reduce teen motor vehicle fatalities and injuries through graduated driver’s licensing (GDL). This system limits the exposure to high-risk situations by gradually phasing in driving privileges for teens. GDL allows teens to gain valuable driving experience in low-risk driving situations. 

NCSL Publications

• Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for 15- to 19-year-olds. Graduated driver's license (GDL) laws provide teens the opportunity to gain experience under low-risk conditions while limiting driving under more risky conditions such as driving at night.
• Crash rates for teens are consistently lower in states with nighttime driving restrictions.
• According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than one-third of all 16- and 17-year-old driver-related fatal crashes occurred between 9:00 p.m. and 5:59 a.m.
• The majority of nighttime fatal crashes involving young drivers occur before midnight, yet more than half the 47 states with nighttime restrictions do not restrict driving until midnight or later. Three states have no nighttime driving restrictions.
• The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety defines an optimal graduated driver's licensing system as one that includes a night driving restriction that begins at 9 p.m. or 10 p.m.
• In a national survey, 74 percent of parents said they were in favor of nighttime driving restrictions.

• "Traffic Safety and Public Health: State Legislative Action 2008," Transportation Series No. 3, April 2009, by Melissa Savage, Nicholas Farber, and Anne Teigen.
• Teen Driving -- Graduated Driver's Licenses and More, Transportation Review, June 2007 by Anne Teigen.
• "Keeping Teen Drivers Safe," LegisBrief, March 2007 by Melissa Savage.
• "Surviving Driving," February 2004, State Legislatures by Melissa Savage.
   

Other Links

• NCSL/NHTSA Traffic Safety Legislation Database
• AAA 
• IIHS 
• National Safety Council (NSC)
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
• National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
• Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA)

NCSL Contact

Melissa Savage
Anne Teigen