Should 14 and 15 Year Olds Have Their Driving Privileges Removed?

• January 31, 2009

Bill 1492, which strangely hasn’t been included in the North Dakota legislature’s main index of bills under any topic (someone trying to hide this or what?), would change existing law so that no citizen could obtain a drivers license or permit until 16 years of age.
Is this a good idea? Some would say yes, given that younger drivers tend to have more accidents than older drivers, but is delaying the driving age from 14 to 16 going to make a big difference in terms of the number of traffic accidents we see?
I doubt the change would be significant. I’m fairly certain it wouldn’t be significant to justify the inconvenience it would cause many North Dakota families.
North Dakota is a big, wide-open state with little in the way of public transportation and weather patterns that make walking or riding a bike impractical (if not downright impossible) for big chunks of the year. Thus, North Dakotans are heavily reliant on cars to get around. And families are dependent on younger drivers to help run errands, transport siblings, etc. Delaying the starting age for driving from 14 to 16 is going to be a big pain-in-the-rear for a lot of citizens in this state.
Which is perhaps why the bills sponsors are keeping it somewhat quiet.
Regardless, if the people behind this want to do something to make our roads safer they should put in a requirement that elderly drivers over a certain age pass a driving test yearly. I think that elderly drivers pose a much more serious threat on the roads in a lot of ways than younger drivers. Younger drivers may get distracted, but they’re still capable at times of good driving. Older drivers are just plain awful once they get past a certain age, and endanger everyone on the road.

Tags: Domestic Issues, North Dakota News, Politics

http://Array Wing Chun Geologist

I say give driver licences to kids based on their grades.

4.0+ students get licenses at 15

3.0 Students get licenses at 16

2.5 Students get license at 17

2.0 Students Get license at 18

Under 2.0 get license at 19

Drop outs get license at 25
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

Stupid.

I’ve yet to see that our 14 year old drivers are any riskier than a 16 year old Minnesota driver. (or even our 16 year old drivers)

In fact I think our system is better because at 14 I was pretty scared while I was still learning to drive. At 16 the kids are quite a bit cockier and probably don’t take it easier while they’re still learning.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/Anna/ Anna

I’ve never heard of a 14 y/o getting a license unless they’re farm workers. Here in Washington you get a learning permit at 15 1/2 y/o and license at 16.
Personally, I think all kids between the ages of 13 and 18 should be kept in a huge pit and if they can act like adults after that they can be permitted to socialize with the rest of society. (JUST KIDDING… kinda)
LOL … obviously, I spent too much time as a secondary teacher
http://sayanythingblog.com/ likwidshoe

I say give driver licences to kids based on their grades.

I’m down with that idea.

Sort of.

The type of classes taken should matter. A “C” calculus student is quite different from an “A” remedial math student. 12th grade remedial math is at the level of 5th and 6th grade along with a hint of 7th grade algebra.

I seem to remember some kids in my graduating class who always made honor roll because they were smart kids taking some pretty ignorant classes that they breezed on through. Meanwhile, there were those like me, who took the harder classes and made lessor grades as a result. Was the “C” average I got in calculus worth less than the “A” someone else got in remedial math? I don’t think so.

It’s at this point that it gets messy and now we’re talking about a bureaucracy to determine what is “fair”. Maybe it’s not such a good idea after all.

Perhaps base it on school attendance, having a job, passing grades, and whether or not the kid stays out of trouble? That would be more egalitarian from my point of view and would go a lot further in showing the maturity and responsibility required for driving. We don’t want to add yet another reason to take easier classes.
ollie-B

North Dakota is a big, wide-open state with little in the way of public transportation and weather patterns that make walking or riding a bike impractical (if not downright impossible) for big chunks of the year. Thus, North Dakotans are heavily reliant on cars to get around. And families are dependent on younger drivers to help run errands, transport siblings, etc. Delaying the starting age for driving from 14 to 16 is going to be a big pain-in-the-rear for a lot of citizens in this state.
Which is perhaps why the bills sponsors are keeping it somewhat quiet.
Regardless, if the people behind this want to do something to make our roads safer they should put in a requirement that elderly drivers over a certain age pass a driving test yearly. I think that elderly drivers pose a much more serious threat on the roads in a lot of ways than younger drivers. Younger drivers may get distracted, but they’re still capable at times of good driving. Older drivers are just plain awful once they get past a certain age, and endanger everyone on the road.

I refer you to my comments on seat belts. How can we expect our young people to be good drivers? Look at the examples adults set for them. I find it odd that you think having to be inconvenienced because you don’t have a 14 yr old to drive around really matters. Driving takes concentration. Do you think many 14-15 yr olds can adequately handle a car in an emergency situation. Cars are not rolling restaurants, phone booths and dance halls.
As far as the older drivers are concerned, I couldn’t agree more. Anyone who drives for miles on the wrong side of the highway or too slow for traffic is a menace to all the other menaces driving around them.
Lioncourt

I think both ideas are good.
Bobby

No [polldaddy 4119879 http://answers.polldaddy.com/poll/4119879/ polldaddy]

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