Should Driving Age Be Raised To 18?

Nowadays especially for teens, the choices, good and bad, that one makes defines oneself. So why as a parent would one put their child in harms way, by making the decision of driving for one's child instead of letting them make their own decision to drive when 18. Motor vehicles are or should be considered a deadly weapon considering all the deaths a motor vehicle can have. According to The U.S. Department of Transportation, motor vehicle traffic crashes were the number one leading cause of death for young teens in 2010. The driving age should be raised to 18 because at the age of 16 the brain has not fully developed, young teens tend to be impulsive, and it would be more cost efficient for the drivers and the parents.
The rational part of the brain at the age of 16 has not fully developed; it is also shown in research done by The University of Rochester Medical Center that an adult brain works completely different from that of a teen. At the age of 16 the brain has not even fully developed and is therefore not capable of handling a motor vehicle with precision. One can not even receive Oral Surgery till the age of 18 because the jaw and skull have not fully developed. One could easily say that the brain develops quite rapidly in a teenager often causing
their thoughts and decision making abilities to be off beat or skewed.
Young Teens are impulsive. Decisions can be solely based on pleasure and reward, not a true consequence which could be a danger. A 16 year old is bound to make bad decisions in their life especially because of peer pressure, and the pressures of high school. But a teen at the age of 18 will more than likely have a better appreciation for a car than a 16 year old does; younger teens seem to want to go and party or stay out later and get into trouble than older teens. Even though teen impulsions are just part of their biology, teens “should always be held accountable for their actions, and should not think differences in brain function as an excuse for dangerous behavior” (Fleck).
Raising the driving age to 18 would be more cost efficient for the drivers and the parents. Some jobs will not even allow for their workers to be under the age of 18, therefore, the 16 year old drivers might not be able to find a job to help pay the monthly car payment. Not to mention the cost of gas and car insurance, which are both expensive necessary payments when one drives a car. Driving at 18 will be easier for parents to save money for college and a car at the same time; also since the teens will be in college at 18, they can arrange their college course schedules around their job schedule to help pay for any extra expenses. A 16 year old would not be able to do this because they have to go to school all day, plus extracurricular activities after school can be time consuming. There are many websites that just have cars especially made for young teens.
Many opponents of this idea of raising the driving age to 18, disagree that 2 years will not make a teen more responsible, safer, and experienced than the age of 16.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during 2013, the younger teens represented only 7% of the United States population, but those same teens “accounted for 11% ($10 billion) of the total costs of motor vehicle injuries.” Although the number of motor deaths have dropped since 2010, motor vehicle death is still among the top ten leading death among younger age groups (NHTSA). Those who disagree are incorrect because the capability of teens to make quick and safe decisions behind the wheel increases with each year they
mature.
The choices teens make altogether can be the very reason why the driving age should be raised to 18. Although some may say the 2 years difference will not raise teens responsibility and the responsibility will fall back on the parents to take the teens places. That is wrong because safety is very important, and one wants to make sure their teens are prepared and experienced before putting them on the road. The cost efficiency would be a tremendous help for the teens while still helping out the parents in saving money. One would not want to put a teen on the road whose brain has not even fully developed. The love of a parent is uncomparable to the risks of a 16 year old on the road.