Teen Driver and Teen Passenger in Vehicle increases Risk of Death

Teen drivers put everyone on the roadway at risk of a deadly crash, especially if they are bringing teen passengers along for the ride, reports AAA Carolinas. New research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that when a teen driver has only teen passengers in their vehicle, the fatality rate for all people involved in a crash increased 51%. In contrast, when older passengers, 35 or older, ride with a teen driver, overall fatality rates in crashes decreased 8%. Considering the increased risk created by a combination of teen drivers and teen passengers, AAA emphasizes the need for teen drivers to gain adequate supervised training, especially in different driving scenarios, before taking what could be a fatal drive. In 2016, teen drivers were involved in more than one million police-reported crashes resulting in more than 3,200 deaths. Researchers pinpointed that when teens were carrying teen passengers, fatality rates jumped 56% for occupants of other vehicles, 45% for the teen driver and 17% for pedestrians and cyclists. “This analysis shows that in crashes where teen drivers are behind the wheel with a teen passenger, a larger portion of those killed are other road users,” said Tiffany Wright, AAA Carolinas Foundation for Traffic Safety president. “This study also found the fatality rate of a teen-driver related crash increased when factors like speeding or driving at night, were introduced.” Locally, North Carolina recorded 41,364 crashes resulting in 154 fatalities involving teen drivers in 2017, according to the NCDOT. In South Carolina, there were 46 fatalities and 6,154 injuries from a crash involving a teen driver in 2017, according to the SCDPS. “These numbers are staggering, and parents and role models can do better to set good examples behind the wheel for our teens,” said Wright. “Teens simply lack experience behind the wheel, which increases the odds of a deadly outcome, not just for the teen driver, but for their passengers and others on the roadways.” Supervised driving, with parents in the passenger seat as the coach, is the first step to teaching teens how to become responsible and safe drivers. AAA offers a multitude of resources at www.TeenDriving.AAA.com to help coach teen drivers. “Strong coaching and diversity in practice driving sessions are key when teens have their learners permit. And, once teens have their license, consistent parental involvement is essential,” Wright said. Established in 1947 by AAA, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety is a not-for-profit, publicly funded, 501(c)(3) charitable research and educational organization. The AAA Foundation’s mission is to prevent traffic deaths and injuries by conducting research into their causes and by educating the public about strategies to prevent crashes and reduce injuries when they do occur. This research is used to develop educational materials for drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists and other road users. Visit www.AAAFoundation.org. Data used in the Everyone’s at Risk 2018 brief came from the 2016 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) and the Crash Report Sampling Survey System (CRSS).