Young driver dangers escalating, study shows

Almost 12% of injuries and fatalities on the road are caused in accidents involving drivers aged between 17 and 19, a new report suggests.

This is despite 17 to 19-year-olds accounting for only 1.5% of the overall number of driving license holders in the UK, an RAC Foundation study shows.The organisation analysed police data from 49 areas from 2008 to 2012.

It is now calling for the introduction of a graduated licensing system which it believes would prevent 4,500 road accident injuries annually.
Under the proposed system, new drivers would face a 12-month period of probation during which they would have to adhere to various restrictions.

Such legislation has been in the pipeline for some time but the government postponed plans to introduce the system earlier this month.
According to RAC report, an average of 188,368 people were injured in car accidents annually, with 22,391 of those being hurt in a crash involving a 17 to 19-year-old motorist.

"We want to respect young people's freedoms we want to keep them safe for the whole of their driving lives, but that possibly involves some limited restrictions when they first pass their test because that's the riskiest time for any driver,” said RAC Foundation spokesperson Philip Gomm.

"We often think that motorways are dangerous roads because of the speeds involved but accidents happen and they're probably at their most common and severest on the rural roads.”

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