Matt N
TS Member
- Favourite Ride
- Shambhala (PortAventura Park)
Hi guys. In recent days, a bill in the House of Commons regarding graduated driving licenses in the UK has been gaining ground. Put forward by a Labour MP, the bill is gaining cross party support, and it will be voted on very soon.
For those unaware, the idea of graduated driving licenses is that new drivers under 25 still have restrictions on their driving. For example, there may be rules such as a requirement to still have an older chaperone in the car at certain times at very least, a ban on driving at night, a ban on carrying more than a certain number of young passengers in the car, and a complete ban on drinking before driving as opposed to the regular drink-driving limit of one or two pints.
More info can be found via this link from the RAC: https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/news/driving-law/graduated-driving-licences-launched-to-tackle-overconfident-young-drivers/#:~:text=The purpose of GDLs is,these involved a young driver.
With this in mind, I’d be interested to know; what are people’s thoughts on the idea of graduated driving licenses for new drivers under the age of 25?
Personally, I’m undecided.
On one hand, I can see the logic behind this idea. 17-24 year olds have a high rate of road traffic accidents, and having been around 17-24 year olds, there are definitely some overconfident drivers in my age group who will take risks on the road. Some of the suggested rules do make sense to me as well.
On the other hand, the idea of still being heavily restricted after passing does feel like a bit of a kick in the teeth when I’ve been learning for 2 years. Many of the suggested rules wouldn’t really affect me at all, but some of them, such as potentially still needing a chaperone beside you, would be a real kick in the teeth for me.
The other interesting statistic that I’ve heard cited by critics of this idea is that those aged under 25 actually have lower accident casualty rates per billion miles driven than those aged over 85, and that the over-80s as an age group have a similar, if not higher, accident casualty rate than under-25s: https://www.gov.uk/government/stati...sheet-2021#contributory-factors-in-collisions
Rightly or wrongly, some argue that if over-80s do not have any additional restrictions on their driving, then under-25s shouldn’t either.
So from a logical standpoint, I get this idea, but from an emotional one, I don’t particularly like the idea.
In fairness, however, I should acknowledge that I probably can’t give a fair, impartial judgement seeing as I will (hopefully) soon be in the demographic directly affected by this legislation if I eventually pass my driving test. With this in mind, my opinion on this probably isn’t overly valid.
But I’d be keen to know; what are your thoughts on graduated driving licenses?
For those unaware, the idea of graduated driving licenses is that new drivers under 25 still have restrictions on their driving. For example, there may be rules such as a requirement to still have an older chaperone in the car at certain times at very least, a ban on driving at night, a ban on carrying more than a certain number of young passengers in the car, and a complete ban on drinking before driving as opposed to the regular drink-driving limit of one or two pints.
More info can be found via this link from the RAC: https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/news/driving-law/graduated-driving-licences-launched-to-tackle-overconfident-young-drivers/#:~:text=The purpose of GDLs is,these involved a young driver.
With this in mind, I’d be interested to know; what are people’s thoughts on the idea of graduated driving licenses for new drivers under the age of 25?
Personally, I’m undecided.
On one hand, I can see the logic behind this idea. 17-24 year olds have a high rate of road traffic accidents, and having been around 17-24 year olds, there are definitely some overconfident drivers in my age group who will take risks on the road. Some of the suggested rules do make sense to me as well.
On the other hand, the idea of still being heavily restricted after passing does feel like a bit of a kick in the teeth when I’ve been learning for 2 years. Many of the suggested rules wouldn’t really affect me at all, but some of them, such as potentially still needing a chaperone beside you, would be a real kick in the teeth for me.
The other interesting statistic that I’ve heard cited by critics of this idea is that those aged under 25 actually have lower accident casualty rates per billion miles driven than those aged over 85, and that the over-80s as an age group have a similar, if not higher, accident casualty rate than under-25s: https://www.gov.uk/government/stati...sheet-2021#contributory-factors-in-collisions
Rightly or wrongly, some argue that if over-80s do not have any additional restrictions on their driving, then under-25s shouldn’t either.
So from a logical standpoint, I get this idea, but from an emotional one, I don’t particularly like the idea.
In fairness, however, I should acknowledge that I probably can’t give a fair, impartial judgement seeing as I will (hopefully) soon be in the demographic directly affected by this legislation if I eventually pass my driving test. With this in mind, my opinion on this probably isn’t overly valid.
But I’d be keen to know; what are your thoughts on graduated driving licenses?