Unsettling statistics warn that the period after Memorial Day marks the 100 deadliest days for teenage drivers.
With school out for the summer, more teens get behind the wheel and pose threats to themselves and others by engaging in risky driving behavior. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety warns that teenagers have the highest crash rates compared to any other group in the United States, and the alarming trend shows no signs of dying down.
According to the study, car crashes involving teens aged 16 to 19 significantly increase during the summer because more teens are driving, boosting the number of fatal crashes by 16 percent compared to other periods throughout the year.
In the past five years, more than 5,000 people died in car crashes involving teens during the 100 days following Memorial Day, making up a troublesome statistic. Moreover, social media use and texting behind the wheel are on the rise among teenage drivers, the AAA reports.
Jurek Grabowski, research director at the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, points out that 10 people on average die during the summer as a result of car crashes involving teenage drivers.
"This new research shows that distraction continues to be one of the leading causes of crashes for teen drivers. By better understanding how teens are distracted on the road, we can better prevent deaths throughout the 100 Deadliest Days and the rest of the year," Grabowski says.
AAA examined "naturalistic crash data" from more than 2,200 moderate to severe crashes involving teenage drivers between 2007 and 2015. By assessing various data, the AAA examined the potential contributing factors, as well as the behaviors in the seconds right before the collision. After thorough analysis, the AAA was able to come up with information that is not available in police reports.
"It also allowed us to look for trends associated with crashes of young drivers from 2007-2015, paying particular attention to the behaviors being engaged in leading up to those crashes," the AAA says [pdf].
In addition to driving more during the summer months, there are also other differences: teens driving during this period are driving more for recreational rather than purposeful activities such as going to school and back. At the same time, teens often drive with more friends in the car during the summer months, heading to the beach, picnics, parties and such, sometimes on roads they've never traveled before.
Driving with more friends in the car, however, may be one of the biggest reasons for crashes stemming from distracted driving.
"We have always known that passengers were a big risk for teens, but what we're really finding out now is, passengers may be one of the most important risks for teens, even more so than things like texting," says John Ulczycki, vice president of strategic initiatives with the National Safety Council.
Talking or tending to other passengers reportedly caused 15 percent of accidents. Talking, texting or using a mobile phone accounted for 12 percent of crashes, while using or looking at something in the vehicle led to 11 percent of car crashes.
The AAA further found that 51.3 percent of the crashes between 2007 and 2015 involved male drivers, while 48.5 percent involved female drivers. In 93.5 percent of all crashes, the driver was wearing a seat belt. One-third of the crashes, 34.3 percent, had passengers in the car.
A further breakdown reveals that 24.5 percent had one passenger in the car, while 9.8 percent had two or more passengers in the vehicle at the time of the accident. Overall, about 25 percent of all crashes with passengers in the car involved at least one passenger who was not wearing a seat belt.
In the car crashes with passengers, the vast majority (84.8) of passengers were between the ages of 16 and 19, males in 54.4 percent of the crashes and females in 44.9 percent. The study further reveals that 52.8 percent of crashes occurred on collector roads most often.
AAA also says the crashes were more frequent during the weekdays (71.5 percent) than the weekend, and the most common intervals were between 6 and 9 a.m. (18.8 percent) and 3 and 6 p.m. (26.0 percent).
Taking into account multiple factors, behaviors, statistics and reports, the 100 days following Memorial Day are considered the most dangerous and deadly days for teenage drivers. Extra caution is advised, so minimize distractions, don't engage in risky behavior behind the wheel and drive safely!
