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Teenage Driver Fatalities by State:
2012 Preliminary Data
Published February 2013
News Release: New Study: Teen Driver Deaths Increase in 2012 (Feb. 26, 2013)
Learn More About Teen Driver Safety
Preliminary data indicate deaths of 16- and 17-year-old drivers are up 19 percent between the first six months of 2011 and the first six months of 2012. The data was provided by GHSA members, who were surveyed in late 2012. All 50 states and the District of Columbia responded to the survey. This report analyzes the data provided.
If the final 2012 data follows this trend, then 2012 would be the second year in a row of increases in teen driver deaths, following eight years of decline. (GHSA had predicted the 2011 increase in teen driver deaths in a similar report last year).
The recent increase in teen driver deaths is presumably related to the partial economic recovery that has taken place, leading to more teens on the road and greater exposure to risk. Another possible explanation is that fewer states have been strengthening their Graduated Driver Licensing systems in recent years.
Renewed efforts to achieve further reductions in teen driver deaths include: strengthening GDL systems (and improving compliance with existing provisions); improved driver education and training programs; scientifically-based evaluation of the many programs addressing young drivers; and concentration of resources on those shown to have positive effects.
- Teenage Driver Fatalities by State:
2012 Preliminary Data
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