COLUMBUS – Ohio teenagers hoping to get behind the wheel will have to wait a bit longer under a bill that will undergo a full House vote.
The Ohio House Transportation and Public Safety Committee voted 11-to-4 on Tuesday to advance a bipartisan bill that would raise the minimum age to get a probationary driver’s license from 16 to 16½.
The current eligibility age for a learner’s permit will remain at 15 ½ but the new bill will require the individual to hold that permit for one year before they can get their license, instead of six months.
According to research by the auto club AAA, inexperience is the leading cause of accidents involving teen drivers and the new law would give young drivers a full year to practice behind the wheel with adult supervision, instead of the current six months.
“Research shows that six months is just not long enough and here in Ohio, with four seasons, we’re seeing many teens that aren’t even getting practice driving in the snow,” AAA Ohio senior community relations manager Kimberly Schwind said.
The bill, co-sponsored by the committee’s ranking member, Rep. Michael Sheehy (D-Oregon) and Rep. Gary Scherer (R-Circleville), would also ensure newly licensed teen drivers experience more time driving at night with an adult driver by beginning supervised nighttime driving protections for novice teen drivers at 10:00 p.m., rather than midnight, Schwind said.
“Ohio has certainly seen an uptick of injuries and deaths related to teen drivers, and this legislation will make sure that our drivers are fully prepared for the dangers of modern roadways,” Sheehy said.
Car crashes are the leading cause of death for teens and new teen drivers, ages 16 and 17, are three times as likely as adults to be involved in a deadly crash, according to research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.
Under the new law, a new driver will be able to bypass the probationary license process when they turn 18.
A similar bill was introduced in November 2017 but failed.