Driving is a bigger threat to teenagers than gun or knife crime

Young drivers are becoming more worried about the dangers of motoring

Car crash

Driving is increasingly been perceived as a major threat to teenagers’ safety, reveals new research by the AA Charitable Trust – more so, in fact, than gun or knife crime.

Seventeen percent of respondents say driving is the single biggest risk to the safety of teenagers. A decade ago, when the survey was first carried out, the figure stood at just 11 percent – that’s a 50 percent increase.

And despite headlines in the news, gun and knife crime have now dropped below driving in the list of risks to teen safety. Sixteen percent rank these top: 10 years ago, the figure stood at 25 percent.

It’s a striking reversal that Joshua Harris, director of campaigns for road safety charity Brake, feels is long overdue. “With the perception of the dangers facing young drivers finally catching up to the reality, it is clear that the Government must take decisive action in order to protect young lives.”

Globally, road accidents are the single biggest killer of teenagers. In the UK, 889 16-19-year-olds were killed or seriously injured in cars in 2016.

“Young people are far more at risk in a car than they are from gun or knife crime,” said AA Charitable Trust director Edmund King.

“Young drivers have been a particular focus for us and it is good that the message about the risks they face on the roads is finally starting to sink in.”

Graduated Driver Licensing

What’s the solution, argues Brake’s Harris? One possible answer is a Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) system. It “is proven to work and has public and parliamentary backing”.

Such a system could involve a 12-month learner period, an initial test, then an additional probationary period. This would allow independent driving, but with restrictions such as late-night curfews.

“We urge the Government to introduce this safer licensing system as a matter of priority. For far too long, young lives have been ruined and lost on our roads,” said Harris.

Read more:

Related Articles

Richard Aucock
Richard Aucockhttps://www.richardaucock.co.uk/
Richard is director at Motoring Research. He has been with us since 2001, and has been a motoring journalist even longer. He won the IMCO Motoring Writer of the Future Award in 1996 and the acclaimed Sir William Lyons Award in 1998. Both awards are run by the Guild of Motoring Writers and Richard is currently vice chair of the world's largest organisation for automotive media professionals. Richard is also a juror and Steering Committee director for World Car Awards and the UK juror for the AUTOBEST awards.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Find a Car Review

Latest

How to protect your car with an OBD port locking device

We explain how to prevent your car being stolen by criminals targeting its On-Board Diagnostics (OBD) port.

New Taycan Turbo GT is Porsche’s most powerful road car ever

With a power output in four figures, the new flagship Taycan Turbo GT has already been breaking lap records.

How to make a safe U-turn

A U-turn is a 180-degree turn in the road, so your car ends up facing in the opposite direction. Here is how to make the manoeuvre safely.

Playmobil creates a safari-ready classic Porsche 911

Off-road 'safari' conversions of the Porsche 911 are popular in the real world, so Playmobil has built a toy version.