Study: Risk Of Teen Drivers Being Killed Increases If There Are Teen Passengers In The Vehicle
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Oct. 14 through 20 marks Teen Driver Safety Week and there are more reasons than ever to limit the amount of passengers traveling with a new teen driver.
Tim Williams has more on the findings of a recent study.
As more and more studies are done on teen drivers and safety, several themes are becoming apparent.
"The overall message is teens with teens in a car is a very deadly mix," said Ragina Averella, AAA Mid-Atlantic.
A new study released by AAA looked at data from 2005 to 2010. It focused on 9,578 fatal crashes involving 16 and 17-year-old drivers and risky behaviors that contributed. Speeding and distraction topped the list.
"The risk of a 16- or 17-year-old driver being killed in a fatal crash actually doubles if there are two teen passengers in the vehicle with them. That number actually quadruples when there are three or more teen passengers," Averella said.
At Elite Driving School in Owings Mills, the challenges facing new drivers are identified and solutions addressed.
"Your parents care very much about you and they don't want you to be one of these statistics," said an official with the school. "The statistics are real and they happen for a reason."
AAA encourages parents to remain involved with their young drivers and be their role models on the road.
"We encourage parents certainly to be good role models and to practice what they preach. We don't want parents driving, speeding, driving distracted while on the other hand telling their young kid not to do that," Averella said.
