Lawmakers stood with Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White on Wednesday and pledged to push teen driving legislation that would make Illinois’ licensing system one of the toughest in the nation.
Advocates for tightening teen driving laws lauded the proposal, saying it will close gaps in Illinois law and make roads safer for everyone.
“It sends a very strong message from top state officials that they’re very serious about trying to reduce the number of teen deaths,” said Judie Stone, president of the Washington, D.C.-based Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety.
The legislation was drafted by a task force convened by White in response to the Tribune’s yearlong examination of the root causes of accidents involving teen drivers.
The bill would triple the length of time a teen must hold a learner’s permit, tighten night driving restrictions and make teen drivers wait longer before they are allowed to carry passengers.
The law also would require students to get six hours of behind-the-wheel training by a certified driving instructor. The Tribune reported that some driver’s education courses gave students less than two hours of behind-the-wheel instruction.
White and the lawmakers also seek to establish a true graduated licensing system that imposes restrictions on 16- and 17-year-old drivers, easing those limits as teens gain experience and maintain a clean record.
Stone’s group this month evaluated each state’s driving laws and gave Illinois a high rating. But passage of the bill would further elevate the state’s record on driving laws, she said.
“If this package of laws is to pass, and I certainly hope it does, [Illinois] will have definitely improved its graduated driver licensing program to be among the very best in the nation,” Stone said.
Underscoring the point of the legislation, White and lawmakers passed out a page from the Tribune’s “Teens at the Wheel” series that features photos and names of 59 teens killed last year in crashes involving teen drivers.
“We understand [driving] is a rite of passage,” said State Rep. Jay Hoffman (D-Collinsville), co-chair of White’s task force. “We understand it is important to many parts of Illinois to have 16-year-olds driving, and we don’t want to take that right away. But we want them as they grow up to make sure that they also will be able to grow old.”
The lawmakers said the proposal will be brought to the legislature in February. While they are confident it will win broad support, they expect some opposition, especially to some of the more controversial elements of the plan.
Among the more controversial elements include a restriction that newly licensed teens cannot drive after 10 p.m. on weekdays, forcing parents to do more driving.
