Teen Drinking And Driving Essay

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Right now, if you are 15 ½, you can drive with a driving instructor. For many teens, getting their driver's license, is a rite of passage, but for many other teens, it may be a huge mistake. In America, motor vehicle crashes is the leading cause of deaths among teens. Teens, ages 16 through 19, are three times more likely to be involved in a fatal car crash. Teenagers are more likely to underestimate dangerous situations. Along with this, 35% of teens ages 15-20 who were involved in a fatal crash, were speeding, and 25% were drinking alcohol. Driving requires a lot of responsibility. When someone gets behind the wheel to drive, they are not just putting their life in danger, they are responsible for the lives of passengers, and other drivers. …show more content…

Drowsy driving is the cause of 100,000 car crashes per year. Teens need about 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night, but only 15% reported that they get 8 ½ hours of sleep. With this lack of sleep, this can lead to dangers behind the wheel. When you do not get enough sleep, you are putting yourself, and surrounding drivers in danger, once you get behind the wheel. Teenagers’ brains are not fully developed. White matter begins to spread from the back, to the front of the brain, at around twenty years of age. The frontal lobe, which is not fully developed during teen years, is responsible for motor skills, emotional maturity, and risk-taking. Lack of development in the frontal lobe, can lead to teens increased desire to make risks, and to perform complex maneuvers. The younger the driver, the more likely they are to underestimate situations.
According to Debate.org, 37% of teens believe that the driving age should be raised, and 63% believe that it should remain where it is. Some people claim that it is hard enough to for teens to get around, the way that the driving age is, but others think that teenage driving is a danger. There are even some people who believe that the age should be lowered! Some people believe that it is about responsibility, not age. Some people think that since teens are involved in before and after school activities, then they should be able to drive

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