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| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
| State Rep. Michael McGeehan |
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McGeehan: Lacey’s Law for teen drivers takes effect late this month
HARRISBURG, Dec. 9 – State Rep. Mike McGeehan, D-Phila., Democratic chairman of the House Transportation Committee, is alerting parents and young drivers that new rules for teen drivers in Pennsylvania go into effect Dec. 27.
The new law is named for Lacey Gallagher. The 18 year-old senior at Little Flower High School was killed on April 28, 2007 when an SUV she was a passenger in crashed on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
Soon after the crash, McGeehan was contacted on behalf of Lacey’s parents and asked to help pass legislation that would better protect teen drivers and their passengers. From the start, McGeehan took an active role in the successful campaign to enact Lacey’s Law.
The goal of Lacey’s Law is to reduce the alarming number of traffic accidents involving teen drivers.
McGeehan said the new law increases the amount of behind-the-wheel training for young drivers, limits the number of non-family passengers teen drivers may have in the vehicle with them and increases seatbelt requirements for teens.
McGeehan worked to get the law to update the Junior Driver Law through the Transportation Committee and for final enactment in the legislature in October.
“This has been an ongoing effort to combat the higher risk for accidents among new young drivers,” said McGeehan. “It is not a knee-jerk reaction but is based on the research that shows us what makes the young driver most vulnerable, and driver distraction is a big factor.”
According to the American Automobile Association, vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens in the United States, and studies show that a 16-year-old's chances of dying in a vehicle crash increase significantly with each new passenger added to the vehicle he is driving.
For instance, a 16-year-old driving with one teen passenger is almost 40 percent more likely to die in a crash than if he were driving alone. Adding another teen passenger increases those chances by 86 percent and two passengers raises the likelihood by 182 percent.
Teen drivers also increase the risk for other drivers and passengers on the road, McGeehan said. When teen drivers are involved in fatal crashes, two other individuals are killed for every teen driver killed. From 2009 to 2010, fatalities in Pennsylvania in crashes involving 16- or 17-year-old drivers increased by 43 percent.
“We keep seeing tragic stories of teen drivers and schoolmate passengers being killed or badly injured traveling to or from school or to social activities. Just this week, five young people were killed in a crash in Adams County,” he said.
McGeehan said the most significant provisions in the updated law include:
-- During the first six months of driving, teen drivers are restricted to having a single non-family passenger in the car with them while they are driving.
-- Teen permit holders must have 65 hours of supervised behind-the-wheel training, up from the previous 50 hours. Ten of those hours must be at night, and five must be in inclement weather.
-- Failure to wear a seat belt is changed to a primary offense for drivers and passengers younger than 18, meaning the driver can be pulled over solely for that violation. The fine is $75.
McGeehan said more information about the new teen driver rules is available online at the state Department of Transportation website at www.dot.state.pa.us.
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