Published: Sep/Oct 2001

The economic losses and the number of human lives lost to teen crashes each year are staggering. However, new graduated driver licensing laws that are now in effect across the country–including Missouri–are projected to prevent thousands of crashes and save millions of dollars, as well as lives, AAA reports.

Teens represent 7 percent of the driving population in America. Yet, they are involved in 15 percent of fatal crashes and 18 percent of total crashes. In 1999 alone, the economic cost of these crashes totaled $32.2 billion.

AAA has generated projections, based on National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) crash and injury data, for the effectiveness of Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) laws across the country over a 10-year period for drivers 16 to 17-years-old. In GDL programs, student drivers earn their licenses in a three-stage program, and restrictions are lifted as they advance through the stages.

For example, Missouri has a projected prevention in crash-related injuries of 10,390 involving drivers aged 16 to 17 years over a 10-year period, as well as 32,280 total crashes prevented in the same time period. This would result in cost savings of nearly $226 million.

Other states in the region that have passed GDL laws are Illinois, Kansas and Indiana. Each state is expected to see cost savings in crashes prevented of about $500 million, $157 million, and $232 million respectively.

Nationwide there is a projected prevention of 416,060 injuries, and the prevention of 1,293,270 total crashes. This adds up to a cost savings of more than $9 billion.

States with strong GDL laws could see 15 percent fewer crashes, 15 percent fewer crash-related injuries and 2.5 percent fewer teen crash-related deaths.

In 1997 only eight states had GDL laws before AAA’s “License to Learn (LTL): A Safety Program for New Drivers” was launched nationally that year. Now 46 states plus the District of Columbia have GDL laws. The states without GDL laws are Alabama, Hawaii, Montana, and Wyoming.

AAA’s LTL program is the nations most comprehensive program targeted at decreasing novice driver crashes. AAA would like to focus on the need to improve quality and availability of driver education and training through uniform national curriculum standards and instructor qualifications.

To help get Missouri’s GDL law passed, AAA created an informational booklet called “Behind the Wheel: Missouri’s Teen-Age Drivers at Risk.” The booklet shows that in 1999, one out of five traffic accidents in Missouri involved young drivers and that one person under the age of 21 was killed or injured in driver-related traffic crashes every 20 minutes.

For details on Missouri’s GDL law, pick up a free copy of “Behind the Wheel” at your nearest AAA service office.