It’s Now More Dangerous for New York Teens to Drive Than Ever Before

Police officers are reminding parents to make sure their children take extra precaution while driving.

The span of time between Memorial Day and Labor Day is known as the "100 Deadliest Days."  Both law enforcement and AAA coined the term because teen drivers are at elevated risk of getting into a fatal accident.

Deadly crashes involving those between the ages of 15 and 20 dramatically increase during this timeframe. Those between 16 and 17-years of age are most likely to be in a fatal accident, and that motor vehicle crashes are this age group's leading cause of death.

In 2021, AAA said 900 people lost their lives in teen-driver related crashes, which marks a 25% increase than average.

Law enforcement and AAA said the rise in fatalities may be due to the increased use of cell phones behind the wheel. Often these fatalities involve texting and looking at GPS directions. Police also say a vehicle's info-tainment system is also a main distraction, which can cause inexperienced drivers to get into an accident.

Although teen drivers in New York are among the safest in the nation, a tragic amount of young adults continue to needlessly lose their lives during the summer months.

Read More: New York Is 2nd-Safest State for Teen Drivers

Governor Kathy Hochul's administration has created a Teen Driving Safety Toolkit for parents to download and share with their children. "Driver inexperience is the leading cause of crashes involving teen drivers. Most crashes are not caused by teens who drive recklessly," her office warned.

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of unintentional deaths and hospitalizations for teens ages 16 to 17 in New York State. Every day, approximately six teen drivers in NYS are treated at hospitals due to vehicle crashes. In NYS, 30% of the teen driver deaths, ages 16-17, occurred during the months of June, July, and August.

The governor also reminded parents to ensure their children are wearing seatbelts because teen drivers and passengers have been found to have lower rates of seat belt use.

Hochul also said the number of people hospitalized due to teen-related driving accidents costs $24 million annually in hospital charges.

In most cases, car crashes are entirely preventable. Parents should ensure their child has learned good driving habits, like leaving an appropriate amount of follow distance between them and the car ahead of them, as well as learn to scan the road far enough to head to make sure they don't miss any potential issues.

Of course, maintaining the speed limit is also crucial and can be the deciding factor between a injury or death in a car accident.

For more information, visit the governor's website HERE.

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