Graduated Licensing Requirements Lower Number of Illinois Teen Car Crashes, Says Department of Transportation
According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, the state’s new graduated licensing requirements appear to be working. Between January and October, 60 teen drivers died in Illinois car crashes. That’s a significant decrease from 2007, the last year before the GDL was enacted, when 127 teen drivers died.
Per Illinois’s GDL:
• Teen drivers must now have a learner’s permit for six month instead of just three.
• Teen drivers are not allowed to use cell phones while driving until they turn 19.
• Illinois’s graduated licensing program creates two young driver stages: the learner stage and the intermediate stage.
• The GDL prohibits both learner teen drivers and intermediate teen drivers from operating a motor vehicle after 10p during the week and after 11p on Fridays and Saturdays.
A teen who has just gotten a driver’s license can only have one teen passenger in the car with him or her during the first year.
Young drivers in general are known to be more easily distracted than older drivers. They also don’t have as much driving experience and are more likely to text while driving. Having a group of teens in the car can be distracting for the teen driver, who may forget to pay attention to the road and other vehicles.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says 164 people died in Illinois car accidents involving a young driver last year. The NHTSA classifies people between the ages of 15 and 20 as young drivers.
80 of the victims were the young drivers. 39 of the people that died were riding in the young drivers’ cars. 37 of the Illinois traffic accident victims that died were riding in the other vehicles involved. 8 of the Illinois auto accident victims were not riding in or on a vehicle when the deadly teen driving accidents happen.
Teen driving law appears to work, Galesburg.com, October 23, 2009
Young Drivers, Traffic Safety Facts 2008, NHTSA (PDF)
Related Web Resources:
Illinois Graduated Driver License, Cyberdrive Illinois
If you or someone you love was injured in a Chicago car accident involving a negligent or careless motorist, contact our Chicago car crash law firm today.
