Taylor Tate 

Reasons that can account for the number of collisions in teens range from drug and alcohol intoxication, to inexperience and recklessness. Jane Brody, writing for the New York Times  says that although “Teenagers represent only 6 percent of drivers, they are involved in 14 percent of fatal crashes.” Why are car collisions such a stubborn problem today? 

A primary reason for young adult drivers finding themselves involved in collisions is  inexperience. Brody says that “In one study, the highest crash rate occurred during the first month after teenagers got their license. That rate, 120 crashes per 10,000 drivers, dropped to 70 crashes within five months.” This is because teenagers are still new drivers and need more experience, hence the drastic reduction in a short time after these young adults practice being on the road. 

Another reason collision rates are rising for young drivers today is intoxication. Teens who are driving while under the influence have a higher chance of getting into a car accident than the average adult. In another article in the New York Times, author Maggie Koerth-Baker relates the understanding of Marilyn A. Huestis, a senior investigator at the National Instutitue on Drug Abuse that “Though teenagers drink and drive less often than adults, they are more likely to crash when they do drink, especially at low and moderate blood-alcohol levels.”

It’s not just drinking while driving that presents a major issue in teenager’s overall performance while driving, but Marijuana is as well. Huestis also says, “It is clear that marijuana use causes deficits that affect driving ability,” and that there is “a twofold increase in the risk of an accident if there is any measurable amount of THC in the bloodstream.” This estimate, from a variety of studies, is lower than that of driving under the influence of alcohol. A different study showed that “20-year-old drivers with a blood-alcohol content of 0.08 percent — the legal limit for driving — had an almost 20-fold increase in the risk of a fatal accident compared with sober drivers.” 

It’s not only inexperience and illegal substances that are making teen car accident rates skyrocket, unlicensed motorists take the cake.  Drivers without licenses put anyone they encounter on the road in danger. “According to our survey, unlicensed teen drivers engage in unsafe driving behaviors more often than their legally driving peers,” says Flaura Koplin Winston, M.D., Ph.D., co-scientific director of CHOP’s Center for Injury Research and Prevention and a co-author of the study.

As a young student driver, it is important to drive cautiously and not make certain choices that can affect you in the long term as a developing driver. If you get behind the wheel, make smart decisions and don’t add to the high rate of teenage car accidents.