Even though teens are at higher risk of injury or death in motor vehiclecollisions than nearly every single other age group no matter what component ofthe country they’re in, where teens live can also have an impact on their risk,according to separate studies conducted by Allstate Insurance Organization andReader’s Digest. Motor vehicle crashes are the number one killer of Americanteens, and each year, according to the National Highway Visitors SafetyAdministration (NHTSA), additional than 5,000 men and women aged 16-20 arekilled in passenger vehicle crashes.

The Allstate study used federal crash statistics, company claims data onteen motor vehicle crashes, and statistics from the US Census Bureau to listthe ten most dangerous cities from the 50 largest metropolitan areas in theUnited States. The results revealed that the most risky cities for teens arelocated in the South, with the top 3 in Florida. Of the top 50 cities in thecountry for teen fatality crashes, Tampa/St. Petersburg/Clearwater,Orlando/Kissimmee, and Jacksonville rank number 1, two and three,respectively.

The Reader’s Digest study uses a distinct classification approach, rankingall 50 states based on existing Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL), safety belt,and Driving Under the Influence (DUI) laws. The report listed Alaska,California and Delaware as the top 3, and North Dakota, Mississippi andArkansas as three of the worst. Florida is categorized as “Fair,” thenext-to-lowest ranking. Interestingly, California cities also scored high inthe Allstate study: Numbers one, two and four had been San Francisco/Oakland,San Jose, and Los Angeles.

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Factors that contribute to teen motor vehicle crashes contain:Speeding/driving too quick for conditions Driver distraction, such as cellphone use and dealing with passengers Inexperience Driving at night Drivingunder the influence of alcohol or drugs (including prescription andover-the-counter drugs)

Teens also normally neglect to wear their seat belts, increasing the risk ofserious injury or death in a crash. An observational study by the UtahDepartment of Well being found that the teen seat belt use rate falls whenother high-risk factors are present, such as when teens drive under theinfluence of alcohol, drive at night, have multiple teen passengers, or aredriving without a driver’s license.

The risk elements listed above, which includes seat belt requirements, areaddressed by GDL laws in several states. GDL laws set standards that underagedrivers need to meet just before proceeding from one stage of licensure to thenext. In the 1980s, 90% of high schools taught driver’s education; in 2009,only 20% do. This means that teens get the majority of their driver educationfrom their parents and are subject only to state requirements when becominglicensed, making GDL laws of ever-growing importance in lowering teen crashrates.

Whilst a national model for GDL laws has existed since the mid-1990s, nostate follows all of the requirements. To show the disparities among states,The National Safety Commission (TNSC) analyzed the GDL laws in four states:California, Florida, Mississippi, and North Dakota. The study showed that:

In California, the minimum age for a drivers permit is 15 years, sixmonths; in Florida and Mississippi, the minimum age is 15. The minimum age inNorth Dakota is 14. Although California and Florida each require 50 hours ofpractice driving with a parent or guardian in the learner’s permit stage, 10hours of which have to be at night, neither Mississippi nor North Dakota needparental certification of any driving practice hours. North Dakota does nothave any passenger or nighttime restrictions, and Florida and Mississippi haveonly nighttime restrictions. California’s passenger restriction is that for theinitial 12 months, the restricted driver could have no passengers younger than20, with limited exceptions for immediate family.

The Reader’s Digest study indicated that stricter GDL laws usually result inlower teen fatality rates, and a study by Johns Hopkins University discoveredthat comprehensive GDL laws decrease fatalities among 16-year-old drivers by 38percent.

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