The following was found in the Mpls. StarTribune on 2-17-08:
No state in the country has a higher percentage of teenagers behind the wheel involved in deadly crashes than Minnesota. Teens themselves are asking for more restrictions. Some young drivers are also wondering whether driver's education has become an outdated system aimed more at getting them to pass license tests than at keeping them alive.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, teens were driving in 18.4% of Minnesota's fatal traffic accidents from 2004 to 2006. The national average is 14.3%. Statistics show that a Minnesota teen dies in a traffic crash roughly every five days.
The fundamentals of driving haven't changed, but the distractions have changed dramatically. A study shows that about two-thirds of kids have admitted to texting while driving. The increasing amount of technology available to teens is a huge issue. Minnesota law bans cell phone use and requires seat belts for passengers driven by someone with a provisional license, mostly 16-17 year-olds who need a clean record before getting an unrestricted license at 18 years of age. Many states, including Wisconsin, prohibit 16 year-old drivers from carrying more than one passenger or driving after midnight.
The following is from the Today show on 3-25-08:
Teens are distracted up to 80% of the time while using devices such as Ipods, cell phones and text messaging when they are driving. Half of all teens have admitted using technology devices while driving. Teens take their eyes off the road 4 times longer than adults when they are distracted. Car crashs are the number one cause of death for teenagers. These figures don't take into account things such as looking for a cd, changing stations on the radio, or talking to passengers riding in the car that also takes thier mind off what they are doing.