Should the Government Raise the Driving Age - Essay Example

of The need to add the driving age Outline Introduction Brief history of automobile. Age limit to own license in USA Driving schools teaching procedures in relation to accidents History Research on teenage drivers Teenage drivers and the alarming statistic of accidents (77% of accidents in USA teenage drivers are involved) Reason from history analysis to rise the driving age. Analysis Mobile phones, teenagers and accidents. ‘Inadequate Knowledge with the type of vehicles Vehicle maintenance trends in teenage drivers Teenage driver’s dependency effect to parents and economy in general. Number of teenage drivers in the country in comparison to the older drivers and the impact on the environment (pollution) Teenage drivers are an endangered species on the road. Conclusion A brief opinion on the findings both for and not for issuance of teenage drivers with licenses. The need to add the driving age Introduction The best thing that made a landmark in the transport industry is the invention of the automobile. The different cars that came to being have undergone modification that tends to simplify their control. Cars also improve efficiency in the transport sector. However, the advantages that the automobiles enhance to human beings are dependent on the quality of a particular person who is in control of the vehicle. The instance hence has led to the setting up of operating institutions that train every new driver of the rules in the road and the best way to control the car while travelling (Davis). The only failure that the training institutes do not cover is how a driver can react to a situation that may determine the safety of the driver and other road users. The safety of the driver and the road users is thus dependent on the physical, emotional and psychological form of the driver. As a result, various factors have led to the occurrence of various accidents. The situations have caused the various governance bodies in the region to enact laws in an attempt to control the number of accidents that occur. One of the measures is the regulation of the generation that is suitable for issuing a license for driving. After many years, the federal government of the United States has given mandate to issue licenses to new drivers. The age limit is however national and is sixteen. The argument thus lies on what is the best age to give consent to with the aim of ensuring safety in the roads. History There is a need to rise the age of driving from sixteen to a more mature age. (Heidi E. Nemme). Research has reveled that the teenage individuals who are at the tender age of sixteen do not possess the necessary capacity to deal with the risky situations that the roads pose. The teenagers tend to be immature in the dealing of critical situations. More studies show that the teenagers have a thrill with the speed and are more prone to over speed while driving. Most of the teenagers do not have an inherent knowledge to analyze the various dangers that the urge of over speeding can bring. Over speeding is dangerous and causes accidents numerous studies have revealed. Research shows that about seventy-seven percent of the accidents in the US include people who are miners who tend to be behind the wheel. Therefore, there is a serious urgency of rising the age to a more self-realistic age (Reports). The ideal age is above eighteen years since people of the age are mature in their consequent decisions. Analysis The psychological wellbeing is also a key issue in the determination of how fit a person is in handling an automobile in a road that has multiple users. Study depicts that the use of personal phones when driving is one of the causes of road accidents (Gauld). It is normal for human beings not be able to multitask or have multiple reasoning. Research also shows that the individuals who are teenagers are the superior users of the mobile phones. The common use is chatting whether on the local internet or on the social media. Study shows that the use of phones while driving is one of the primary determinants of distraction in the roads. The situation tends to shift the visualization of the road by the motorist to the phone (Fleming 15). Thus, the aspect justifies the need to eliminate any persons below the age of eighteen from handling any car. The instance will enhance safety on the roads. Teenagers tend to fantasize with unrealistic speeds a lot without minding their safety. Most of the time this is triggered with peer presure and efforts to fit in with the cool kids. The above fact is a major point to consider while suggesting imposing of a ban on teenage drivers. Inadequate Knowledge with the type of vehicles Another issue is the knowledge that the teenagers have about the motors that they use. Most of the teenagers tend to own cars that do not have enough facilities that are essential for protecting them in the case of an accident. The instance depicts that most teenagers do not have enough funds to upkeep the vehicles that they use on a daily basis. The various checkup processes that are necessary before driving are also absent. The various propositions hence illustrate the incapacitation that teenagers have to maintain their vehicles in order to ensure that they are safe while driving. The economic status of most teens is not suitable for the ownership of automobiles. The fact is thus probable to rise the age of driving in the American nation (David). The issuance of driving license to teens of sixteen years old is capable of having an adverse impact on the economy. The case tends to give an upsurge in the level of dependence in the country (Castro). The costs that accrue in the ownership as well as the possession of an automobile does not rationally equate to the revenue that a teen accumulates in his livelihood. The instance, therefore, sees a relocation of duties to another source that is most probably the parents or the respective guardians. The effect of the issue means an additional cost on the consumption expenditure and a minus on the savings. An accumulation of the same leads to a significant level of national dependence. The issue is thus a consideration for the addition of the driving age in the nation. The other issue is that the population of the young generation is more than that of adults in the United States. The fact implies that the current driving age results in the consequent addition of road users with a substantial number (Aksomitis). The instance in turn raises the effects that motorists are impacting on the environment. The transmission of dangerous gases to the surrounding is directly proportional to the amount of motorists that are prevalent in a given region. In an attempt of containing the adverse climatic changes, there is a need to control the driving age even higher. The problem can trigger the use of other forms of transport especially by the teens that are more energetic. The issue can also enable the combined use of a unit car such as a bus reducing the adverse effects a notch higher. The issue of the states in America having the mandate to issue licenses has led to the enactment of different driving ages. For example, eighteen states in the American nation are the ones that do not have strict laws on the aspect of the driving age. Research, on the other hand, does not lie. Research shows that the teens are the most endangered persons on the road and most prone to the happening of a road accident (Simon 67). The federal government should thus pick the mandate whereby it concerns the age limit for the driving and correspondingly choose an age that will ensure the safety of all road users. The safety on the roads will provide a healthy society that is good for the economy of the country. Conclusion The banning of the issuance if license to the teens should not be a limitation to the gradual learning of the safety measures in the usage of vehicles. There is an advantage of driving from a tender age in that a motorist earns experience in the usage of the roads. Individuals who learn to drive at the tender age tend to have an advantage that learns the same at a more mature age. On the contrary, the learning of driving should not be enough reason for driving without licenses. The state should thus simplify the laws that exist and include other bylaws that provide guidance to the teens that are learning how to drive. Parents as well as guardians, on the other hand, have the obligation of making sure that any expeditions by their children do not involve the use of automobiles. The fat will ensure the successful control of the usage of cars and thus have a minus effect on the number of road accidents that are evident. Works cited Aksomitis, Linda. Teen Driving. Detroit [Mich.]: Greenhaven Press, 2009. Print Castro, Cándida. Human Factors of Visual and Cognitive Performance in Driving. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2009. Print. David, Firestone. "Bid to Raise Driving Age Is Roiling Rural Georgia." New York Times (Mar 14, 2001): .Davis, Robert. "16." USA Today (March 2, 2005): 9. Fleming, Susan. Teen Driver Safety: Additional Research Could Help States Strengthen Graduated Driver Licensing Systems. Darby: DIANE Publishing, 2010. Gauld, Cassandra S. " Concealed texting while driving: What are young people’s beliefs about this risky behavior?" Safety Science, 65, (2013): p. 63–69. Heidi E. Nemme, Katherine M. White. "Texting while driving: Psychosocial influences on young peoples texting intentions and behavior." Accident Analysis & Prevention, 42 (2010): 1257–1265. Reports, Consumer. "Young drivers at risk." Color Photographs (2012): p. 49. Simon, Karen Goodman and Kirk. Safe Road Home: Stop Your Teen from Drinking & Driving. New York: Sterling Pub, 2005. Read More