Should Privileges of Teenage Drivers Be Restricted?

It is Friday evening… I cannot wait to have my friends jump into the car to catch up with Tom’s birthday party. We have barely driven a mile when a police officer greets me with a ticket. Why? I am 16 years old, carrying four teenagers, at night and in absence of an adult. Our plan for some fun just failed. So, is there a basis for restricting the privileges of teenage drivers? Yes, I do find merit in that reasoning.

Even as teenagers differ with adults on restrictions, there is a universal desire to save life; especially of the beloved ones. So far, in fatal car accidents teenage drivers have had poor judgment due to inexperience, carried disruptive fellow teenagers and driven at night, thereby losing a sister, a brother or a favorite classmate. In addition to saving life, costs of repairs and insurance are reduced.

In the current provisions of law, persons aged below 18 years are regarded as minors. This label keeps them from the election ballot box and military uniform, but in equal fairness it delays a night behind bars. With such a soft landing for minor wrongdoers, responsibility is not such a costly ticket.

As members of the society, teenagers need as much room for growth as adults. Graduated driving is such a creative way that encourages exploration behind the wheel with a care for lives. Much like schooling levels, this program charts a learner’s progress in driving while rewarding performance with advanced licensing privileges.

If we can save life and money while accommodating youthful adventure in restricted teenage driving, we thus embrace the solution.