The Driving Age Should Be Raised Essay
Do you see teenagers drive? Well you probably do, as a lot of teenagers drive, but they are not the best at it. In California, “you can obtain your driver’s permit at 15 and a half and your license at 16”(Applying). This is a fairly young age and may not be the best, because teenage driving causes lots of accidents and deaths. Currently, there is lots of debate surrounding whether the minimum age to get a driver’s license should increase or not. One major piece of evidence answers this question, which is that car accidents are “the number one cause of death in teens”(Gregory). This shows that teenage driving is a big problem which is why something needs to change. Due to car accidents being the number one cause of death in teenagers, the age to obtain a driver’s license should be increased to 18 years old. Some may say that teens from 16 to 18 years old need to drive to be able to get places however there are other means of transportation that are much safer. Other means of transportation include
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walking, biking, public transportation, and even taxi companies such as Uber or Lyft. These means are much safer than a teenager driving and still can get you from one location to another. There may be some downsides to these means, but why would a teenager drive and risk dying when they can travel in many other ways. In general, it does not seem reasonable for young adolescents to participate in the most dangerous activity when there are ways to get around. First, the reason why the age to get a driver’s license should be increased is because it is too dangerous for teenagers.
There are currently “5,500 teenage drivers that die each year and 450,000 teengagers injured”(Brody). These are huge numbers and show how lethal driving is. To better understand, “an average of six teenagers die each year from motor vehicle injuries”. Every day, six families mourn for their dead teenagers, so shouldn’t something change? Obviously, which is why the age to gain a driver’s license should be raised to 18 years old. This will eliminate a big portion of crashes as many teenagers will no longer be allowed to drive. It seems like the clear solution to the big problem that is teenage driving. To add on, “teenage drivers account for 6 percent of drivers but 14 percent of fatal crashes”(Brody). This means adolescents are more likely to get in crashes than adults. Since, teens are more likely to get in car crashes they should not be in
cars. Next, teenagers are not suited to confront the decisions that come with driving as they do not have a fully developed frontal cortex. “The frontal cortex is the front part of the brain which is responsible for decision making, judgement, impulses, and multi-tasking”(Gregory). Also, “the frontal cortex only develops fully during a person’s twenties”(Gregory). These statistics show how teens don’t have developed brains which exemplifies how they are unfit for driving since good decision making and judgement are extremely important in order to drive. Because of having underdeveloped brains, “they easily get distracted by other passengers or by their phones”(Feiler). As teens get distracted they easily forget about driving and end up in a crash. To fix this, 18 years old should be the minimum age to drive as an 18-year-old has a more developed brain than a 16-year-old. It seems logical that the driving age should be increased as teenagers are incapable of making logical and correct decisions behind the wheel. Lastly, “teenagers take much more risks than adults”(Brody). These include driving fast and not wearing seat belts. If teens can’t follow simple tasks such as wearing a seat belt, how can they drive? In reality they can not, which is why the driving age should be increased. It seems illogical to allow teenagers to drive when they are obviously not ready. To portray the effects of this risk-taking behavior, “16-year-olds are nine times as likely to get in a car crash than the general population”(Brody). This shows how the youngest drivers that take the most risks are crashing more often. The best way to stop this problem is to not allow 16-year-olds to drive. Other than increasing the minimum age to obtain a driver’s license there is nothing that will change how many teens die in cars. We know that adolescents engage in risky behavior and we can not change that. However, we can prevent a certain amount of adolescents from driving. This will totally eliminate the chance for 16 or 17 year olds to mess around behind the wheel making life safer for them and everyone else. Finally, there is nothing to debate or question about teenagers taking risks and crashing cars which is why they should just not be allowed to drive them until 18 years old. Based off of the culmination of the clear evidence ranging from the number of adolescents killed each year to the development of the frontal cortex, the age at which you can drive should be increased. If it is not raised, then teenagers will continue to die from car crashes. This driving problem is very serious and is remaining fairly constant, unless a solution is found which is what I am proposing. To summarize, 16-year-olds have poorly developed brains causing them to make poor decisions and they also engage in risky behavior. Cars and teenagers do not go together, as risks are not meant to be taken behind the wheel. There is no need to make excuses or cover-ups, we have a critical and urgent problem at our hands. This is why I am suggesting that the age at which teenagers should be able to get their driving license in the United States be increased to 18 years old.
walking, biking, public transportation, and even taxi companies such as Uber or Lyft. These means are much safer than a teenager driving and still can get you from one location to another. There may be some downsides to these means, but why would a teenager drive and risk dying when they can travel in many other ways. In general, it does not seem reasonable for young adolescents to participate in the most dangerous activity when there are ways to get around. First, the reason why the age to get a driver’s license should be increased is because it is too dangerous for teenagers.
There are currently “5,500 teenage drivers that die each year and 450,000 teengagers injured”(Brody). These are huge numbers and show how lethal driving is. To better understand, “an average of six teenagers die each year from motor vehicle injuries”. Every day, six families mourn for their dead teenagers, so shouldn’t something change? Obviously, which is why the age to gain a driver’s license should be raised to 18 years old. This will eliminate a big portion of crashes as many teenagers will no longer be allowed to drive. It seems like the clear solution to the big problem that is teenage driving. To add on, “teenage drivers account for 6 percent of drivers but 14 percent of fatal crashes”(Brody). This means adolescents are more likely to get in crashes than adults. Since, teens are more likely to get in car crashes they should not be in
cars. Next, teenagers are not suited to confront the decisions that come with driving as they do not have a fully developed frontal cortex. “The frontal cortex is the front part of the brain which is responsible for decision making, judgement, impulses, and multi-tasking”(Gregory). Also, “the frontal cortex only develops fully during a person’s twenties”(Gregory). These statistics show how teens don’t have developed brains which exemplifies how they are unfit for driving since good decision making and judgement are extremely important in order to drive. Because of having underdeveloped brains, “they easily get distracted by other passengers or by their phones”(Feiler). As teens get distracted they easily forget about driving and end up in a crash. To fix this, 18 years old should be the minimum age to drive as an 18-year-old has a more developed brain than a 16-year-old. It seems logical that the driving age should be increased as teenagers are incapable of making logical and correct decisions behind the wheel. Lastly, “teenagers take much more risks than adults”(Brody). These include driving fast and not wearing seat belts. If teens can’t follow simple tasks such as wearing a seat belt, how can they drive? In reality they can not, which is why the driving age should be increased. It seems illogical to allow teenagers to drive when they are obviously not ready. To portray the effects of this risk-taking behavior, “16-year-olds are nine times as likely to get in a car crash than the general population”(Brody). This shows how the youngest drivers that take the most risks are crashing more often. The best way to stop this problem is to not allow 16-year-olds to drive. Other than increasing the minimum age to obtain a driver’s license there is nothing that will change how many teens die in cars. We know that adolescents engage in risky behavior and we can not change that. However, we can prevent a certain amount of adolescents from driving. This will totally eliminate the chance for 16 or 17 year olds to mess around behind the wheel making life safer for them and everyone else. Finally, there is nothing to debate or question about teenagers taking risks and crashing cars which is why they should just not be allowed to drive them until 18 years old. Based off of the culmination of the clear evidence ranging from the number of adolescents killed each year to the development of the frontal cortex, the age at which you can drive should be increased. If it is not raised, then teenagers will continue to die from car crashes. This driving problem is very serious and is remaining fairly constant, unless a solution is found which is what I am proposing. To summarize, 16-year-olds have poorly developed brains causing them to make poor decisions and they also engage in risky behavior. Cars and teenagers do not go together, as risks are not meant to be taken behind the wheel. There is no need to make excuses or cover-ups, we have a critical and urgent problem at our hands. This is why I am suggesting that the age at which teenagers should be able to get their driving license in the United States be increased to 18 years old.