
Teenagers are dying behind the wheel.  Several factors come together to create this deadly vector of statistics for the youngest American drivers.  The National Institutes of Health explain that one facet of the problem is that the teen brain is literally not ready for the hazards of driving. Simple inexperience also lies at the heart of the problem. This inexperience not only causes more fatal accidents, but also a higher rate of vehicle rollover, speeding, and driving off the road.  
Teens also fare far worse when they travel with their peers—which anyone with an iota of sense knows they do on a regular basis.  The Southern California Injury Prevention Research Center conducted a study that showed the following correlation: between the age of the passenger and the number of traffic accidents occurring.
	California and other states have attempted to increase the safety of teen drivers by requiring temporary provisional licenses that limit the hours that teens may drive and prohibit other minors as passengers.
	But provisional driver’s licenses are, in my opinion, stopgap measures.  The real issue is that—as a group—the youngest drivers are, by all statistical markers, simply not able to adequately handle the risks and responsibilities.  Psychologist Marvin Zuckerman believes even 18 is too young for a regular driver’s license.  USA Today reports that Zuckerman has performed research suggesting a common desire among those under the age of 19-20 to take risks for the sheer thrill of the sensation.  It makes sense then, to delay driving at least until the tendency to thrill-seek has begun to level out.  If we continue to issue driver’s licenses to young teens, we will not only continue to see deadly accidents happening, but the death toll is likely to reach staggering proportions in the next few years.  By 2010, the Baby-Boomer’s babies will be eligible to drive and millions of new teen drivers will ready to hit the road.  
Legislation dealing with this issue would be reasonably straightforward.  Schools could continue to provide driver’s education classes to begin the learning process for future drivers, but no one under the age of 18 could operate a motor vehicle.  A provisional permit could still be issued prior to granting a full driver’s license, and a certain number of practical driver’s training hours would still be required as well.  The specific number of hours required could be based on the number of hours already required by the majority of states (in California, for example, that number is currently 6 hours of behind-the-wheel training and 50 hours of practice with an adult.)  Because the deadly statistics for teen drivers come from a cross-section of all states, uniform, national legislation on this issue would be a reasonable—and I believe effective—means of protecting teens across the nation. 
The legislation I suggest is by no means a novel idea. 