Tighter Rules Sought On Teenage Drivers
Assemblywoman Sandy Galef, D-0ssining, and Sen. Vincent Leibell, R-Patterson, Putnam County, have a bill in the state Legislature that would stiffen requirements for teenage drivers, including limiting the number of teens allowed in vehicles with young drivers.
The measure would ban inexperienced drivers with less than six months with a license from having other teenagers in the car, unless accompanied by a licensed driver age 21 or older.
State law no
w limits teen drivers to two passengers under 21 per car unless supervis
ed by someone over 21. But AAA and other groups have urged that the law is insufficient because teenage drivers become distracted with friends in the car.
The measure would also increase the number of required supervised driving hours from 20 to 50 for young drivers with a learners’ permits.
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Feel good legislation, 6 months before the November elestion, so lets send out press releases so people think we are doing our job.
Good to see republicans and democrats working together on legislation that will save lives. This is when government works its best, when politicians can be their party affiliations a side and cooperate for the people of the state. Kepp up the good work Assemblywoman Galef and Senator Leibell.
Please. You can’t legislate EVERYTHING. Don’t the cops have enough silliness to do as it is? Why not go all out and say no licenses till 21? But that’s as ridiculous as their idea is. Enforcement? Not likely, not easy.
It’s a good idea, but I’m not convinced it should be a law.
It IS the law in my house, though. No way am I letting my daughters ride with some teenage maniac (for various reasons, as you might guess.) The older one is currently grounded for lying about taking the bus, when she really got a ride with a girlfriend who only has a permit.
in order to be effective a law has to be capable
of being enforced..how does the legislation address this
issue…and there are several states now attempting to
pass legislation lowering the drinking age to 18..
under the theory if you can die in Iraq..you ought to be able to have
a beer in the states?
I don’t know if there is a more scary scenario for parents than their kids taking rides with teenaged friends, especially after the sun has gone down. One big reason for premature graying. And the Consultant is correct in that a law that is not enforced breeds contempt for law in general. In my youth, I, myself, used the argument that if you were old enough for war, you were old enough for a beer. Still haven’t come to resolution on that conundrum. Logic tells me one thing, a sense of fairness tells me another, but no matter what conclusion one comes to, drinking and driving don’t mix, period.
This is nonsense, feel-good legislation. It only marginally expands the law. How about requiring highway driving for a road test? There’s an idea that will really save lives.