NC Bill would reduce the practice of young drivers

By Jennifer Fernandez

When Northern Carolina has implemented a year of practice as part of a new graduated driver license for young people aged 16 and 17 in the 1990s, the state experienced an almost immediate plunge in fatal accidents for these children.

But during the pandemic, legislators temporarily shortened the time required for adolescents to drive with a 12 -month supervision to six. In 2023, in the midst of complaints from the constituents concerning delays in adolescence of their final licenses, they decided not to restore the 12 -month training period, Opt for nine months instead.

Since then, the crash rate for young drivers in North Carolina has increased by 13%, according to new data.

Legislators now seek to further reduce the time of time that adolescents must have supervision during driving. Their proposal would only require 60 hours behind the steering wheel before drivers who are at least 16 years old can go to the second level of the graduated driving license system.

The Chamber’s Transport Committee should CV Discussion of House Bill 584 at 10 a.m. today April 16.

The license system, promulgated in 1997, is recognized for having dropped fatal and serious accidents among the 16 -year -old drivers of the state of 46%. The lower crash rates remained stable until 2021 during the pandemic, when legislators reduced this period of practice, researchers Road safety research center At UNC Chapel Hill told NC Health News.

Representative David Willis (R-Marvin), the main sponsor of HB584, told legislators last week that parents had asked for changes due to long expectations to enter the offices of the motor vehicle division. The DMV fought against waiting times before and during the pandemic – and staff shortages in addition to more people moving in the state, combined with an imminent deadline next month so that people can get a Real id – added to the workload.

A DMV site search On Tuesday, the Fuquay-Varina DMV office as the only on a state scale with meetings available for one of the three stages of the graduated driving license. The afternoon waiting times on the same day of driving license offices across the state, went from No Waiting to County Building in Craven in Havelock in the eastern part of the State, almost three and a half hours in Mocksville in the central foothills, according to the DMV of the DMV of waiting tracker.

These long expectations should not be used as an impulse to reduce practice time and therefore weaken The young driver’s license system said Robert Foss, who studied adolescent safety problems for decades. Foss, director emeritus of Center for the study of young drivers At the Highway Safety Research Center, helped develop graduated driver’s licenses.

FOSS said that the state license system, which has been considered the ordeal in the country for decades, “guarantees that young beginner drivers are reasonably competent when they start … to drive alone.”

The key, he said, is the various experiences that young drivers have over a long time. The state originally required that drivers have a learner’s license for 12 months. Meanwhile, they were more likely to live driving in spring rains or winter snow, and through a summer sun or racile fall days.

“Unfortunately, we have already seen him damaged by the Legislative Assembly a few years ago when they reduced (the driving period) on all the evidence available,” said Foss. “And now we have seen the result, which is 16 -year -old accidents – having dropped for almost 30 years – we have now started back.”

Proposed modifications

Three changes to the graduated driving license system are considered.

• Tell the requirement that adolescents have a learning permit for at least nine months.
• Eliminate the requirement of driving eligibility certificate. School form must be filled To show that the student is enrolled in school and makes progress towards graduation.
• Allow teenage drivers to obtain a full online provisional license instead of a person and that the license was sent to them by post.

Foss said that the requirement for driving eligibility certificate was initially intended to keep students at school. But, he said that it had placed “a massive burden” on school systems because he had not come with funding to adopt it.

Willis accepted, arguing that he no longer served a goal.

“The DMV is ready to let go. Schools no longer want to face these worries,” he said.

The displacement of the online provisional license process “would avoid part of the meeting headache that we have at the moment for an appointment that is really not necessary,” said Willis. At this stage, drivers must submit a newspaper showing that they have led at least 12 hours, half of which is at night.

“We asked for this in this bill that the point is looking for ways to be able to do so online,” he said.

This seems to be in accordance with the DMV decision to provide more online services, said DMV communications director Marty Homan.

If the General Assembly approves the bill, the changes would become in force on October 1. They would apply to requests for permit or provisional license subject to this date or after.

Are 60 hours sufficient?

The biggest change proposed in HB584 would eliminate the period of nine months that the license of a learner must be held before the driver can apply for the second stage of the license process.

Willis described him as “waiting period”.

Caroline Mozingo, co -director of the Highway Safety Research Center, rather described it as “an imperative period of practice for … new drivers”.

During the meeting of the Committee last week, representative Zach Hawkins (D-Durham) said that he was not in favor of the bill, in particular the change in the practice period. He asked Willis if he would be willing to modify the bill to reduce the nine months to six months “So there is more time for a driver to get more experience on the roads.”

Willis said he would be ready for this. He added that the 60 -hour requirement would probably take several months for most students anyway.

Tom Vitaglione, a long -standing defender of children’s health problems in the state, told NC Health News that there was no evidence that the 60 hours “really make a difference”.

“Legislators think:” Oh, I can count on it. This will work, “he said. “But again, they didn’t take the time to look at science.”

Foss said that if the 60 -hour requirement was everything you need to reduce accidents, there would have been no change when the practice period went from 12 months to six months.

Instead, with fewer months of supervised experience, the 16 -year -old crash rate increased by 13%, according to preliminary data. And the first data for 2024 shows crash levels at this same higher level, said Foss.

The variety is important

There is no way to mandate what is necessary with regard to the exact type of practice, said Foss. This is why more time on the road is important.

“These children must drive on all kinds of roads which are, at any time of the day, at any time of the year, and they must do it a lot,” he said. “Going out and driving a few times on an interstate is not enough. Taking out and driving on a rural road for a few hours on Sunday is not enough.”

“What you want,” continued Foss, “it is for these children to meet all the possible things that they can … while you are sitting there with them so that you can help you.”

Crash data is preliminary so that they can change, but even if Foss thinks that it is very unlikely that the crash level is decreasing as the data is examined later, it is a good chance that it increases.

“Everything that is done to weaken the system means that all those who drive in North Carolina are more at risk … By putting adolescents who are not as well trained as they could be-and should be,” he said.