Should Teenagers Drive? Everyone remembers leaving the DMV with a big smile on their face because they just did the impossible; they passed their road test. You can now take your car, in my case my moms, and drive anywhere you want to. You feel like you’re an adult. What you probably did not know is that driving is the biggest killer to teenagers nationwide. The minimum driving age ranges from a low to fourteen to a high of seventeen. For example, in lower populated states such as Alaska and Iowa an adolescent can receive a permit to operate a motor vehicle at fourteen years old. That is roughly when a teenager enters their freshman year of high school. Some may say that this is too young for a person to be handling such a big responsibility. In the state of New York …show more content…
This proposes an important question, is sixteen the right age to get a drivers license? I believe that the legal driving age should in fact be raised to eighteen years old throughout the United States. Everyone could attest to the fact that teenagers are not the most ideal at making the right decision all the time. Personally, I was a part of a serious motor vehicle accident that could have been easily avoided if I were more mature at the time. I always thought I could handle anything on the road and I was just as experienced as the next person. That was until I was driving too fast on the interstate causing my tire to blow out from under me. Teenagers are prone to haste decision-making and cannot respond as well in a stressful situation, compared to an adult. In calm situations, teenagers can rationalize almost as well as adults, but in stressful situations the part of the brain that controls decision-making is seized. This is because of their brain development. Ralph Jacobson, a lawyer with a concentration in personal injury and employee litigation stated, “the
Teenagers brains and reflexes are not fully developed until the age of 18. B. “At age 16, most people are not fully mature. Many teens do not realize that their reflexes and hand-eye coordination skills are not fully developed yet, and they can end up getting in accidents.” (articles.mcall.com) C. Most teenagers do not have the capability to prevent or withstand a car accident or the air bag deployment. V. Conclusion A.
Today, many teenagers work hard to obtain their license starting at age 15 by getting their permit. Many parents encourage their children to get their license and gain these privileges, however some encourage their kids to wait and many states agree. Driving age is commonly set at sixteen, but because of safety concerns, the idea of raising the driving age to eighteen is currently posed by state legislation. Increasing the driving age to eighteen is a smart decision because teenagers are seen as irresponsible, they are more likely to get into accidents, and teens can become easily distracted.
...year, raising the minimum driving age to 16 seems hopeful in making safer roads for society. In doing so we all should strongly encourage our teenage drivers to be more mature, to pay more attention, to be more confident in their driving, and to not think that they are so invincible to accidents.
" Web. The Web. The Web. 15 Mar. 2010. http://www.idebate.org. Gregory, Ted. A. Should 16-Year-Olds Drive?
Driving is something people do everyday. Although many people do it well, some do not, that being said the legal age to drive should be raised to twenty one years of age. The driving age should be raised because teens at the ages of fourteen through twenty should not be behind the wheel for the simple fact that they are just too young and too inexperienced to drive, also someone of that age can get more distracted than a person who is twenty-one or older and has had some time to mature and become responsible enough to operate a motor vehicle. “In the United States, 16–19-year-olds have the highest incidence of motor vehicle deaths among licensed drivers and motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among 15–20-year-olds.” (Haggerty
In the 21st century, our nation is facing a major issue, causing teenagers to lose their lives at the hand of the wheel due to inexperienced driving. “Teen drivers between the ages of 16 and 19 are four times more likely than older drivers to be involved in an automobile crash,” and statistics show. Automobile accidents are the number one cause of teen deaths. Driving regulations are in high need to be changed in order for teenagers to gain more experience with driving before taking the driving test, which could help save countless adolescence’s lives.
Most parents think getting their teens their driver's license will lift a weight off of their backs when in reality it seems to only do the opposite once the facts of insurance and statistics come into play. The article “Teen Drivers” provides some statistic such as, “A driver’s licence is a ticket to freedom! At last, teens can drive themselves to school, work and recreational activities .”(“Teen Driving,” par 1) This is a fact of how this small piece of plastic placed in the hands on a teen can be seen as a ticket to freedom. Another thing the article states is, “Parents are thrilled because they do not have to chauffeur the kids around anymore.”(“Teen Driving, par 2) This statement reveals how parents get their freedom back as well teens are gaining their first taste of freedom. But also with this freedom most teens don't realize just how scary the road is and when their parents are no longer driving with them they become nervous and many not be as safe as they could be, which leads me to the thought of many they should choose to take certain steps to create safe driving
My parents gave me my first car for my sixteenth birthday. I was overjoyed by this new found freedom; however, like a large portion of teenagers, I was also terrified of driving. This was mostly because I didn’t receive a lot of experience with my permit, and also because I was afraid of crashing my new car. In the years preceding my sixteenth birthday I had mourned the deaths of several teenaged friends who had died in car crashes. I ended up waiting a full year after I turned sixteen to take my driving test, because I didn’t feel comfortable driving until then, which later paid off when I passed my driving test the first time I took it. In my opinion, all teenagers should do as I did and wait to get their licenses. Though in reality, not all teenagers would agree to wait, so, I believe the legal driving age should be raised to eighteen years of age.
In recent years, the legal driving age has become a topic of heated debate. There are many supporters that advocate for raising the legal driving age to eighteen or twenty-one. However, raising the driving age would cause some major problems. Sixteen should remain the legal driving age in most states and areas because the economic burden would be extremely large and the problems related to young drivers would not be adequately solved by simply rising the legal driving age. This essay will outline the reasons why the legal driving age should not be raised and what some of the better choices are instead.
Teens only make up seventeen percent of the population today, but almost twenty percent of fatal crashes are due to teenagers behind the wheel. Growing numbers suggest changing the driving age to eighteen and some even believe that changing it to twenty-one may save even more lives. With a sixteen year old behind the wheel, accidents are even more likely to occur when compared to a seventeen year old (Boulard). With so much new technology in today’s society there are more distractions on the road than ever before; therefore the legal driving age should be raised to save more lives. If we do not act quickly, then more lives will be lost.
Through out the years teenagers have been driving without a license. In this century teenagers are decreasing to get their license (Teens getting their driver license. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2013, from ). Teenagers tend to think that just because they know how to pump gas press the brakes and rea...
More than 5,000 teenagers die while driving each year in the United States (Gregory). In my opinion this is due to three different, yet equally important factors. The first factor is that the teenage mind is yet to be fully developed, causing them to make irresponsible and sometimes reckless decisions. The second factor is that the experience of driving has evolved since the original driving age was established in the early 20th century. The third and final aspect to take into consideration would be that driving is the lowest minimum age of any adult restricted activity in the United States. Although, it can be one of the more harmful, not only to the perspective driver but his or her surroundings as well. Taking all three of these factors into account I believe the minimum driving age should be raised to 18 to decrease the accident rate amongst teenagers.
Driving a car and obtaining a driver’s license does perhaps seem to provide people with a great sense of independence and freedom. Teenagers need to feel independent in order to learn to become successful on their own as well as realize how to handle life situations on their own, and having a license seems the perfect start and most effective way to do so. When teenagers feel this independence they tend to act more mature, knowing the responsibilities they must now carry on their own (More4Kids). Teenagers often look forward to the freedom that driving offers as well. Teenagers are able to take drives to escape from life’s many stressed, and leave any troubles at home behind without rebelling out against their loved ones.
“Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of unintentional deaths for teens (16-17),” reported The New York State Department of Health. The most exciting thing about being sixteen in the United States is driving. Teenagers can not wait to be sixteen to drive, however, they do not understand the dangers that come with driving at such a young age. Sixteen is the age between child life and adulthood. It is a time when they are not stable and undergoing change, which makes them unsuitable to drive. Many teenagers would say that they need to get to places. In response to that claim, there are public transportation systems and bikes as available alternatives for young drivers. The financial stability and matureness of eighteen year olds proves
Teenagers get experience from receiving their driver’s license because they practice out on the road. Instead of waiting until the age of 18 to drive, teenagers get to familiarize themselves with the different, possible driving situations, rather than being inexperienced at 18. Teenagers get independence from receiving their driver’s license because they do not have to rely on their parents for transportation anymore. They are free to make plans of their own once they receive their driver’s license. Independence is an essential part of growing up to being a responsible adult. Some people say that teenagers should not receive their license at sixteen because they are not responsible, driving is dangerous, and they are more likely to become more distracted than adults. Although these are facts, they do not support the opposing argument. Driving is dangerous, but learning is not. Driving helps teenagers to become more responsible and with time driving also gives the driver experience; experience will reduce the willingness to be distracted while driving. That is why teenagers should be able to receive their driver’s license at