Wisconsin's Graduated Driver Licensing program is showing strong success.
The program restricts when young drivers can get behind the wheel and how many passengers they can have in the car. The DMV's Mitch Warren says recent data shows it's working, with a 32-percent decrease in overall crashes for 16-year-olds and a 25-percent decrease for 17-year-olds. Warren says 16-year-olds are also now 18-percent less likely to be in a fatal crash and 20-percent less likely to be in an accident involving injuries.
Warren says the primary contributor to accidents is distraction, and GDL helps to remove many of those from any vehicle. As a result, he says young drivers are able to learn more attentive habits early on.
Still, Warren says the state can do more to reduce accidents involving young drivers. Among the largest concern right now is keeping cell phones out of the car with teen drivers. Several states have introduced legislation to address that problem, although Warren doesn't expect a push for that legislation in Wisconsin anytime soon.
