COLUMBUS, Ohio – Unofficially, summer has arrived in Ohio and that is the most dangerous time of the year for teenage drivers, according to the AAA.
The calls the period between Memorial Day and Labor Day are known as the “100 Deadliest Days” for teen drivers.
Nationwide, 26 percent more teens die in traffic crashes during the summer months than at other times of the year. The AAA says 29 teenagers between the ages of 13 and 19 died on Ohio roadways during the summer of 2013, one-third of all the teen traffic deaths for the year, says Kimberly Schwind, senior public relations manager for the AAA Ohio Auto Club.
As regular school and activity schedules give way to the more unstructured days of summer, teens drive more often and with less supervision. They also drive more at night, with other teens in the car and often on “purposeless” trips, Schwind said.
An average of 261 teen crash fatalities are reported in the U.S. each month during the summer.
A bill in the Statehouse would strengthen Ohio’s Graduated Driver Licensing law. The measure, sponsored by Rep. Rick Perales (R-Beavercreek), calls for a curfew from a 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. for 16- and 17-year-old drivers, replacing the current midnight-to-6:00 a.m. curfew for 16-year-old and the 1:00 a.m.-to-5:00 a.m. curfew for 17-year-olds.
It also limits the number of passengers that a probationary driver’s license holder can carry during the first year of driving to one passenger, who must be at least 21 years old, with the exception of family members, unless a parent or guardian is in the vehicle.
Schwind says parents should limit the number of trips their young driver makes with no purpose, especially during the first year of driving, when their crash risk is the highest. Parents can become driving “coaches” by continuing to supervise practice driving even after their teenager has their license.
Parents should limit the number of teen passengers because a teen is five times as likely to be involved in a fatal crash when two or more teenage passengers are in the car that when the driver is alone.
Night driving should be restricted because a teen driver’s chances of being involved in a fatal crash doubles when driving at night and more than half of nighttime crashes happen between 9:00 p.m. and midnight, when it is still legal for teenage drivers to be on the road.