I couldn't agree more with the editorial of May 7 commenting on the need for supervision of young drivers. But I wish you had placed more emphasis on the need for legislation to require supervised driving experience.
Many states require teens to have a learner's permit for six months prior to receiving their licenses. Permits make it mandatory for a teen driver to be accompanied by a parent or other adult. Many permits also limit the occupancy of the car to the driver and his supervisor.As a parent who has survived three teenage drivers and is looking forward to helping two more, I am deeply concerned about the current structure in our state and school systems that allows 16-year-olds with three to six hours of legal driving experience to hit the road as fully licensed operators of lethal weapons.
We searched for legally viable ways to work with our children in the car before they were licensed. It was difficult if not impossible. I have observed many parents of teen drivers who have tried to teach their youngsters on city streets and highways before their 16th birthdays, which is against the law. I am aware of one situation where an accident occurred during such a parent-child training session.
We have spent many hours once our children have received their licenses in supervised driving. We have limited their driving until we have seen their competence increase. We have set strict curfews to curtail the times when they are on the road. We have tried in every way to help prepare them to be responsible, confident drivers.
We have been blessed with bright, caring, trustworthy children. Our three teenage drivers have experienced two fender benders and one speeding ticket. One of the fender benders involved another teenage driver.
I am concerned that since the state considers these children as legally acceptable drivers, many, many teenagers are on the road who have not had the benefit of any additional driver's training other than that which is offered through the public school system, which, as the Deseret News pointed out, is inadequate. As much as I would like to think that it is a parent's primary responsibility to teach his children, the reality is that many parents don't, many parents won't, and frankly some of us Utah drivers might do better than to pass on our bad habits.
Please give more attention than a single paragraph in an editorial to the need for legislation in our state requiring a learner's permit system. Only when we make a concerted effort as a whole community to increase the preparation of the legally licensed drivers on our highways will we see an increase in safety and a decrease in tragically unnecessary accidental deaths.
Annette W. Dickman
Layton