What are the Risks Involved in Teenage Driving?

Think back to the first time you were handed the keys to a vehicle and allowed to drive off on your own without an adult sitting in the passenger seat. That was an amazing feeling. Chances are, you took your first solo drive when you were a teenager. However, there is no doubting that teenage drivers are not nearly as experienced as adults on the roadway. Here, we want to discuss the main risks involved with teenage driving so that you have the best information possible to protect yourself, your children, and others on the roadway from serious car accidents.

Teenage Drivers in Arizona

Looking at the information available from the Arizona Department of Transportation, we can see a breakdown of driver ages for recordable accidents as well as how many drivers in each age range were involved in fatal or injury crashes during the latest reporting year:

• 307 drivers aged 15 and under – Two drivers in this age range were involved in fatal collisions and 116 were involved in injury collisions.
• 3,380 drivers aged 16 – 11 drivers in this age range were involved in fatal collisions and 913 were involved in injury collisions.
• 4,842 drivers aged 17 – 11 drivers in this age range were involved in fatal collisions and 1,302 were involved in injury collisions.
• 6,318 drivers aged 18 – 20 drivers in this age range were involved in fatal collisions and 1,781 were involved in injury collisions.
• 6,686 drivers aged 19 – 27 drivers in this age range were involved in fatal collisions and 1,996 were involved in injury collisions.

Teen Driving Risks: What are the risks involved in Teenage Driving

The Teenage Driving Risks in Scottsdale

Teenagers are at greater risk of being involved in accidents. In general, this is due to their relative inexperience when it comes to driving. However, there is no way to skip over the fact that teenage drivers will be on the roadways, but we can be aware of specific behaviors that increase the risk of teenagers being involved in an accident and/or sustaining injuries:

• Nighttime driving. Nighttime driving brings specific risks to everyone on the roadway, not just teenagers. However, because teenagers have less driving experience, driving at night presents added dangers.
• Driving on the weekend. Most injury and fatal collisions involving teenage drivers happen on the weekends. Weekends are when teenagers are much more likely to drive longer distances and mixed driving with other risky behaviors (i.e. alcohol, drugs, etc.).
• Not using seatbelts. Teenagers are less likely to wear seatbelts when they get behind the wheel. Unfortunately, this significantly increases the risks of standing a severe injury if an accident does occur.
• Driving with other people in the car. Teenagers often want to chauffeur their friends from place to place, particularly if they are the first one of a friend group with their driver’s license. However, younger passengers inside of a vehicle can present significant distractions.
• Distracted driving. Operating a vehicle while distracted is incredibly dangerous. However, most teenagers are relatively attached to their mobile phones and other electronic devices. Sending or receiving a text or browsing the Internet can lead to severe accidents behind the wheel.
• Impaired driving. Teenagers do not often make the best decisions when it comes to drinking, and they could mix this behavior with driving. Drinking and driving is dangerous for anybody, particularly inexperienced teenage drivers.

It is crucial for parents to take steps to ensure their teenagers are safe behind the wheel. This includes not allowing them to drive by themselves until they are absolutely ready to do so and keeping tabs on driving behavior at all times.