Teens Behind the Wheel: Graduated Driver Licensing

Two out of five deaths among teens in the United States result from motor vehicle crashes. In 2001, more than 4,700 teens ages 16 to 19 died of injuries caused by motor vehicle crashes (CDC 2003). The risk for motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16- to 19-year-olds than any other age group. In fact, per mile driven, teen drivers ages 16 to 19 are four times more likely than older drivers to crash (IIHS 2003). Add to this, in 2002, the estimated economic cost of police-reported crashes (fatal and nonfatal) involving drivers ages 15 to 20 was $40.8 billion (NHTSA 2003).

 
How Do Teens Safely Gain Driving Experience?

Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) addresses the high risks new drivers face by allowing them to get their initial driving experience under low-risk conditions. CDC’s Injury Center supported two publications on the topics of young drivers and GDL:

• Lin ML, editor. Graduated driver licensing. Journal of Safety Research 2003;34(special issue):1–126. 
• Simons-Morton B, Hartos J, editors. Reducing young driver crash risk: Proceedings of an expert conference on young drivers. Injury Prevention 2002;8(Suppl II):ii1–ii38.

 
CDC Facts, Activities, and Research

• CDC Fact Sheet about Teen Drivers
• CDC Activities Related to Teen Drivers
• CDC Transportation Injury Research Priorities, as described in the CDC Injury Research Agenda 
  

Online Resources

• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Traffic Safety Facts – Young Drivers
• Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, Teenage drivers
   

References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) [Online]. (2003). National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (producer). Available from: URL: www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars.  [Cited 15 Nov 2003].

Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Fatality Facts: Teenagers 2002. Arlington (VA): The Institute; 2003 [cited 2003 Nov 15]. Available from: URL: http://www.iihs.org/safety_facts/fatality_facts/teens.htm. 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Dept. of Transportation (US). Traffic safety facts 2002: Young drivers. Washington (DC): NHTSA; 2003 [cited 2003 Nov 13]. Available from: URL: http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/TSF2002/2002ydrfacts.pdf. 

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