Summer is definitely upon us. Apart from summer BBQs and swimming in the sun, there is a darker side to this season that isn’t often talked about, and we are well into it. It is known as the “One Hundred Deadliest Days.” For teen drivers (and all of us who share the road with teen drivers), this is the most dangerous time of year. The One Hundred Deadliest Days is typically the period between Memorial Day and Labor Day, and according to AAA, there is a fourteen percent increase in teen driver fatalities during this time.
Not surprisingly, there are two significant factors that play into this dangerous time: nighttime driving and speeding.
9 PM and 5 AM are the worst hours of the day for teens to be on the road. Thirty-six percent all motor vehicle fatalities involving teenage drivers occur between that time period. One in ten of all motor vehicle fatalities that occur at night involve a teenage driver.
As for speed, twenty-nine percent of all motor vehicle deaths involving a teenage driver were speed related and again, one in ten of all motor vehicle speed-related fatalities involves a teenage driver.
So, if you are like me and you have a teenage driver in the house, it is critically important to have an ongoing dialogue regarding traffic safety and responsible driving. As most parents with teenagers know, here in Washington State, once your teen gets their license at 16, they are not allowed to drive between 1 AM and 5 AM. There are also other restrictions for the first six months after they get their license, such as restrictions on driving with other non-adult passengers in the car. And of course, texting and driving is illegal for everyone, not just teens.
Be sure to have this conversation with your teen early and often, especially in these summer months!
