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Effects of drinking and driving
The causes and effects of drunk driving
Teens drunk driving
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Today in the world you see how driving becomes an everyday thing, everybody uses a car to get to the destination they need whether it’s their job or just to go out. Many out there have their driver’s license, while others are just starting to learn how to drive to obtain their driver’s license. Everybody has always had an issue with what the right age should be to allow people to obtain their driver’s license and drive. While some people don’t argue with the age that teenagers should be allowed to drive, others don’t agree on letting teenagers get their driver’s license at such young age. People had always had various good reasons on why the driving age should be adjusted or why it should be left as it is. In my opinion and what I think is …show more content…
Those accidents which most of the time are caused by young drivers are caused for many reasons, like not paying attention to driving or being mature enough taking driving more seriously. While many people argue over these accidents taking place they think that they should not allow people to get their license at 18 years of age, and even though I need my license I think they should definitely change the age or make them take driving classes before handing them their license. Even though people get their license because they have passed their driving test and signs test, it causes trouble in the road once they start driving. First of all we should all admit that the vast majority of new drivers are reckless drivers because they don’t follow road rules and they are distracted easily. For some reason new drivers get distracted easily because they seemed to be addicted to their phone and can’t put it down for one second and that’s a serious problem. When these new drivers get out there you see as they’re on their phones every time, while waiting at a light, while driving, and even when they’re putting in gas for their cars. It has caused a whole lot of trouble because when driving they get distracted and don’t pay attention to the road causing them to crash and injure or even kill someone who’s walking across the street or simply another car. That’s a …show more content…
Teenagers are out there driving around with their friends and decide to go drinking not thinking of the consequences of drinking and driving because they are young and ignorant. See what happens when they drink is that they don’t know when to stop and they’re not used to drinking so their body can’t handle the alcohol which interferes with their vision and judgement. They don’t know what they are doing because they are drunk out of their mind and stupid. This is another problem that new drivers are causing because when they are drunk they drive they can’t see clearly making them crash into other cars, people, and even take their own life. That’s why the age of getting your license should be changed. Another reason why people think they should not allow all 18 year olds to drive is because some fail to follow road signs and use their directional lights. When these drivers don’t follow the road signs it can also other people to crash instead of just them, for example, if when driving they switch lanes without letting other upcoming cars know it can lead cars to stop in the middle of the road while other car keep coming in. Cars that are coming behind those who don’t use their directional lights cause them to panic and avoid crashing by just turning anywhere, crashing into people or someone’s property. That’s another incident that happens, young
Drunk driving accidents are the number one killer of adolescents (Teenagers and peer pressures. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2013, from). Mixing drinking while driving can be deadly. Teenage drunk driving accidents not only affect the person drinking while driving, but it also can kill or harm others (Alcohol problems and solutions. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2013, from) (Teen drinking and driving. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2013, from) . Every single accident provoked by drinking and driving could have been prevented. If underage drinking is illegal, why do young people do it ? Teenagers usually are influenced by their elders (Alcohol problems and solutions. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2013, from). In the United States, one out of ten 12 through 14 year olds have tried alcohol and continue to do so on a regular basis . There is a more than fifty percent of probability that young adults that have tried alcohol at a younger age may become alcoholics in the near future (Alcohol fatalities. (n.d.). Retrieved November 1, 2013, from). So, why do teenagers take so many risks with their health and behind the wheel? The answer is simple teen drivers tend to think they are invincible and more needs to be done to educate teens on the dangers of drinking and driving.
Each year, about 5,000 teens are killed or injured in traffic crashes as a result of underage drinking and about 1,900 are due to car accidents. (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and U.S. Department of Transportation) In the newsletter, safety in numbers by National highway traffic administration and U.S department of transportation “Of all the people who died in motor vehicle crashes during 2012, 31 percent died in crashes involving a drunk driver, and this percentage remains unchanged for the past 10 years” (Vol 1, 2013). Crashes involving alcohol include fatal crashes in which a driver had a BAC of .01 g/ ld. or higher (Underage Drinking Statistics)). Deadly crashes involving alcohol are twice as common in teens compared to people 21 and older. This is because teens’ judgment skills are harmed more by alcohol. Teens who drink not only risk hurting themselves, they risk hurting their friends, family, and even strangers when driving intoxicated. Teens and parents both need a strong reminder that underage drinking is illegal and can have disastrous consequences. According to Health Day News, “one study found that in 2011, 36 percent of U.S. college students said they'd gone binge drinking (five or more drinks in one sitting) within the past two weeks, as compared to 43 percent of college students in 1988. Since 2006, the current law has reduced the rate of drunk driving crashes among young Americans” (Preidt, 2014 and DeJong, 2014). This proves that lives have been saved after the legal drinking age increased. According to an article in Time Magazine called “Should the Drinking Age Be Lowered?”, “lowering the drinking age to 18 would stop infantilizing college students, but it would probably kill mor...
Drunk Driving is very dangerous and increasing in the United States every year. Every minute there is someone getting into a fatal accident caused by drunk driving. Every year every adult will pay $500 per year. There are 50-75% of drunk drivers that will still drive on a suspended license. One out of three teens will die because of an alcohol related death. An average drunk driver will drive at least 80 times before getting caught (Caron 2013). There are teens every day that face peer pressure with alcohol. It is very easily in today’s society for teens to follow their peers because parents have to work, so this means there never home. Teens 13-17 need to be educated on what could happen if driving drunk.
With the increasing number of road accidents every year in California, the statistics have shown that almost 50% or more of the accidents happened are involved with the teenagers. The reason is very simple – rash driving, inexperienced driving, texting and driving or mere negligence. Whatever the reason may be, it is very risky to let your teenagers drive without understanding the implications of it. Hence, California State has enforced strict restrictions on the teenagers’ driving.
Just like the teenage boy that died in the wreck, most young teen drivers think they are invincible and are owners of the road which is all due to lack of maturity. The mind set of young drivers now days is “I’m too young to die”, or “it wont happen to me” and they are so blinded by the immature thinking that it gets them in trouble. Some traits generally linked with the immaturity are: chance taking, testing limits, poor-decision making, overconfidence, speeding, following to closely, and dangerous passing (Williams). When you have youthful age and immature characteristics combined the crash possibility is enlarged. The 15-16 age groups are among the most accident prone of most groups (“Don’t”), so why then would we want them behind the wheel? “Most U.S. states license at age 16, but the minimum age for a regular license is 14 in South Dakota and 15 in five other states including: Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, and South Carolina”, stated Allan F. Williams. Youthful age and immature thinking is part of the reason wh...
Drivers in their 20s make up 27 percent of the distracted drivers in fatal crashes (NHTSA). In a class of 30 High School sophomores students between the ages of 15 and 16, will be in their twenties within 4-5 years. Within this short amount of time, that means that 8 of them will be responsible for a fatal car crash. If they survive the crash, they will face charges of irresponsible driving, if not something worse such as vehicular manslaughter which can result in up to 20 years in prison. This will affect them for the rest of their lives. But the answer lies not in stricter driving laws. The solution lies in educating motorists about the dangers and punishments of distracted driving. For example, a study was conducted using a driving simulator.
Driving at the age of sixteen is perfectly okay with people who does not seem to care because he or she feels as if someone gets into a car they are automatically going to put all attention into driving the vehicle which is not true nowadays because teenage drivers feel the need to be on a cell phone or trying to control the radio and trying to get dressed or put on make up when he or she should only be focused on operating the car. As the CDC stated “High school students aged 16 years and older who, when surveyed, said they had driven a vehicle one or more times during the past 30 days when they had been drinking alcohol.” ("Teen Drinking and Driving"), high school students are actually drinking when they should not be anywhere neat alcohol beverages and be able to drive. Based on these facts “Teens are more likely to speed, run red lights, make illegal turns, ride with an intoxicated driver, and drive after using alcohol or drugs.” (Only the Strong Survive "Teen Driving Crash and Fatality Stats"), teenagers are most likely to one ride with a intoxicated driver, and two driver after using alcohol or drugs which proves my point that teenagers should not be able to drive at such a young
Many teens are interested in being able to drive at a younger age, but it is still unclear if they are able to handle it. If the legal driving age is lowered, are we endangering the lives of teen drivers, as well as the passengers with them? I believe most people want to drive as soon as they can. However, recently the government has been trying to pass laws that may change the current driving age of 16. There are positive and negative aspects to changing the laws that allow the driving age to stay at 16.There have been new bills being proposed that mite be passed. “The Minister for Urban Services has introduced a Bill (proposed law) into the Assembly. He wants to amend the Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Act 2000. The new Bill is called the Driving Age Amendment Bill. This Bill is intended to raise the age at which people can apply for a learner’s permit and driver’s license.” (Legislative Assembly). This bill will raise the driving age if it is passed but the aspects of what will happen should be considered before we change it. There are many different reasons why we should keep it at 16. First off it’s a good working system that we have followed for a long time. Another good reason that helps this concept is that the teenagers are still in school so it’s easier for them to take drivers training. If there are more drivers that ultimately mean that more people will be paying for insurance. There are also the reasons why we should change it from 16. Like for instances most 16 year olds aren’t responsible enough to drive. “The facts show that younger drivers (those between ages 16 and 25) receive more citations, are more likely to have their driving privilege suspended, and are responsible for more accidents than drivers in any other age group.” (Dr. Steven Evans). Another reason is that it’s a high cost own a car when they are making so little money.
The driving age should not be raised to 18 years old because teenagers have responsibilities to be go to certain places, if teenagers learn to drive early on in life they will be more comfortable driving and cautious when they get older, and an opposing view point is that teenager’s reflexes are not fully developed or equipped to safely handle an accident. II. Teenagers have responsibilities to be go to certain places. A. Teenagers normally have responsibilities to go to places like sport practices, band meetings or even school meetings. B. Teenagers should be able to drive themselves so they do not miss their activity because they have no one to take them.
“10 percent of licensed drivers are under twenty-one, yet they are responsible for seventeen percent of fatal alcohol-related crashes” (“Underage DUI”). Teens tend to drink quite a bit more than allowed considering it is illegal for them. The drinking age in the US is twenty-one and if you are under the age and get caught, some states have a zero-tolerance policy, which could result in a DUI and or losing your license for a year or more depending on the situation. If you are underage, but still continue to break the rules, even if you know the consequences, then you should lose your license for a year or more. Underage drinkers have a tendency to be less safe than adults, in the sense that they are more reckless or more likely to get in accidents or get caught. “An underage DUI will usually result in license suspension for one year or more and perhaps impoundment of the vehicle.” “The driver will most likely have to attend drug/alcohol and drivers education classes as well as to complete a month or more of community service” (Underage DUI 1). While drinking and driving are still a major problem even with the laws and rules to keep everyone safe, we still have people who refuse to follow the
It really is no secret that if the minimum legal drinking age were lowered, a large number of teens would then drink for perhaps the first time. “The age group with the most drivers involved in fatal crashes with Blood Alcohol Content levels of .08 or higher during 2011 was the twenty-one to twenty-four-year-olds” (“National Highway Traffic Facts”). Young adults are just as irresponsible at eighteen as they are at twenty-one, maybe even more irresponsible. The teenagers will indulge themselves on what they feel is a luxury the first chance they get. The young adults abuse the alcohol, and then go driving because even at twenty-one through twenty-four they are still not as responsible. If the age is lowered to eighteen, many eighteen-year-olds will go out and drink alcohol for the first time. The age group may rise to number one in fatal crashes. The National Highway Traff...
More than 5,000 teenagers die while driving each year in the United States (Gregory). In my opinion this is due to three different, yet equally important factors. The first factor is that the teenage mind is yet to be fully developed, causing them to make irresponsible and sometimes reckless decisions. The second factor is that the experience of driving has evolved since the original driving age was established in the early 20th century. The third and final aspect to take into consideration would be that driving is the lowest minimum age of any adult restricted activity in the United States. Although, it can be one of the more harmful, not only to the perspective driver but his or her surroundings as well. Taking all three of these factors into account I believe the minimum driving age should be raised to 18 to decrease the accident rate amongst teenagers.
Teens only make up seventeen percent of the population today, but almost twenty percent of fatal crashes are due to teenagers behind the wheel. Growing numbers suggest changing the driving age to eighteen and some even believe that changing it to twenty-one may save even more lives. With a sixteen year old behind the wheel, accidents are even more likely to occur when compared to a seventeen year old (Boulard). With so much new technology in today’s society there are more distractions on the road than ever before; therefore the legal driving age should be raised to save more lives. If we do not act quickly, then more lives will be lost.
Engines roaring and cars flying down the highway recklessly, racing to the finish. This is a stereotyped outlook on teen drivers. This however, is not the case. Teens don’t drive to race down the road. They drive for freedom. They drive to get where they need to be on their own. The driving age should not be raised to 18 because it takes away their feeling of freedom, Denies the access to needed transportation, denies experience, It puts additional stress on parents, and they need to be learning the driving skill while they’re young.
Many accidents are caused because teenagers are unaware of driving risks and hazardous situations. One piece of evidence that shows that teenagers need driving experience appears in the following quote, “Teens are more likely than older drivers to underestimate dangerous situations or not be able to recognize hazardous situations,” ("Teen Drivers: Get the Facts"). Teenagers will not have enough driving experience if the driving age is lifted. If teenagers are allowed to drive at sixteen then they will be prepared to drive later on. The longer one waits to drive, the longer it takes for them to become prepared for the risks and hazards of