Nothing riles me more than the continued push towards the infantalism of society. Enough with the reactionary laws bent on shifting responsibility and accountability from individuals to the nebulous governmental behavior police. The Hour leads with the latest focus, on of all things, teen driving. Puh-lease. Bad drivers know no age, and as long as people are encouraged to view a car as a mobile entertainment center instead of merely transportation.
Those polled in the survey conducted by Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s Task Force on Teen Driving supported strengthening teen driving laws, toughening penalties for violations and increasing educational requirements for young drivers under 18-years-old.
The survey was conducted during the first week of January to gauge response to proposed changes to legislation regarding teenage driving, including: Lengthening the duration of the learner’s permit period; restricting the passengers of teen drivers, those under 18, to only parents or guardians; and revoking the license of a 16 or 17 year old found operating a motor vehicle under the influence for no less than a year and requiring that driver to attend a Substance Abuse Training Program.
More than three-quarters of both parents and other adults support increasing the amount of supervised driving required for drivers under the age of 18 before they receive their license.
Those surveyed also supported a longer learner’s permit period (parents 63%, other adults 70%) and a longer period of time when drivers under age 18 cannot carry passengers other than their parents (parents 64%, other adults 68%). They also supported an increase in the minimum age at which a driver may get a learner’s permit (parents – 45.7%, other adults 54.6%) and extending a curfew at night for drivers under 18 (parents 51%, other adults 59%). Drivers under 18 currently cannot drive after midnight.
According to the Task Force driving is the greatest cause of injury and death among teenagers. In Connecticut in 2006, teenager drivers were involved in 50 fatalities.
On Sunday, two teenagers were killed in a crash in Wallingford. Police said that excessive speed played a factor in the accident.Earlier this month, a Norwalk teen was killed when her car collided with a utility pole on Fillow Street.
The findings of the survey are important, Rell said, because they show that parents and other residents of the state are concerned about teenage driver safety.
“These findings are important because they show that both parents and other members of the public want change in how we deal with our teenage drivers because there have been too many tragedies that tell us that we need to do something more,” Rell said. “Just last week, I proposed tougher drinking and driving laws for teens and this survey shows we need to take more action. It is clear that parents want safety addressed in more ways and that makes sense.”
State Sen. Bob Duff, D-25, said that he supports additional legislation but is concerned about whether or not these proposals can be enforced.
“I think these are all common sense proposals, but I also think it comes down whether or not they can be enforced by local and state police, and, if these change will it have impact on accidents and fatalities,” Duff said. “We passed legislation a few years ago that said that teens under 18 couldn’t drive past midnight or that they could only have certain passengers in the car but some say they don’t pay attention to that because they know it can’t be enforced. These laws basically become mute points without the enforcement.”
State Rep. Chris Perone said that he’d like to see some information as to whether or not legislation like longer learner’s permit periods impacts the future driving of teens.
“The survey is interesting, but I want to know more, particularly about whether there is a real correlation between increased driving supervision and the number of accidents teens are involved in,” Perone said. “If there is then we should make sure these laws are enforced.”
More information on the survey can be found www.ctdrive.blogspot.com
Good thing that State Rep Chris Perone questions the science behind Rell’s proposal.
source: The Hour, Survey: Tougher laws, penalties for teen drivers By Jill Bodach, January 22, 2008
