Number of Teens Getting Licenses at 16 Dropping in Indiana

As soon as he was old enough, Blake Whitson, a senior at Jefferson High School in Lafayette, Ind., couldn’t wait to get behind the wheel.

With driving school being a little out of his budget, Whitson practiced for six months under his parents’ supervision once he turned 16, and was a legal driver in what seemed like no time at all.

“I was really excited about getting it. I was tired of my mom driving me everywhere,” he said. “My first time driving I was kind of scared because I didn’t know what I was doing, but now it’s like habit.”

Although Whitson’s motivation to hit the open road helped him get his license as soon as he was legally able, recent data suggests that many teens aren’t as excited about the idea of driving on their own.

In 2010, 28 percent of 16-year-olds had driver’s licenses, compared with 44 percent in 1980, according to research by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the University of Michigan.

The number of older licensed teens also has dropped from 1980 to 2010: 17-year-olds went from 66 percent to 45 percent, 18-year-olds from 75 percent to 61 percent, and 19-year-olds from 80 percent to 70 percent.

The reasons behind the decline vary, officials say.

“For younger consumers, the smartphone may be the shiny new cars from previous generations,” said Thilo Koslowski, lead automotive analyst at Gartner, a research firm.

Michael Sivak, a professor at the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute who provided the 2010 teen driving percentages, also pointed to teens’ access to the Internet.

Sivak said the economic downturn has made it more difficult for young people to own a vehicle, an increasing number are moving to cities that have regular public transportation, and young people, concerned with the environment, are opting against having cars or licenses.

Kyle Meek, president of Indiana All-Star Driving School, said frequently changing laws and graduated license requirements may be having the biggest impact on the data.

“I think nationally what you’re seeing is that most states are raising the age that you can get your license compared to 10 years ago, and they are making it more difficult with different probationary requirements like students having to wait six extra months to start driving,” he said. “The cost of driving and maintenance is also going up, so parents aren’t as eager to have their children driving. Insurance costs are up as well.”

Lafayette’s Serena Alvarez, 23, didn’t get her license until she was 21. She said one factor that also needs to be considered when looking at the number of teen drivers is gender.

“I think there is more pressure on boys to run out and get their license and to start driving right away. I would be interested to see how many teenage boys are driving compared to teenage girls,” she said. “For me and a lot of my (female) friends growing up, we didn’t see the need to start driving because our guy friends always had cars and were willing to drive from place to place.

“It’s a little old-fashioned, but I think a social norm has been that men are a little more into driving and owning a car,”

Jeffrey Nadel, vice president of the National Youth Rights Association, says “discriminatory” graduated license programs “are making it seem like it’s not worth it to get a license until 18.”

“We are looking at this solely in terms of age and not experience in driving,” he said. “Unfortunately that’s leading to these tragic results.”

But Meek said one of the biggest mistakes a teen can make is putting off the process of learning how to drive until they are 18.

“The most important thing for a student is practice. The more supervised time they get behind the wheel, the better,” he said. “If student waits until they are 18, they aren’t under parental control. The probationary laws are designed to help students learn in an environment that is safe.

“And parents have to be involved. They can’t just be sitting on the sidelines.”

Lafayette’s Russell Judge is a parent that is in full support of the law that says Indiana teens must wait 180 days after turning 16 before taking the driving test.

“To me, 180 days is good, but I don’t think it should be any more than that,” he said. “There’s so much stuff involved with kids as far as taking them here and taking them there, you don’t want them to get their license too soon, but then again you want them to get their license so you’re not still doing all of the running around.”

Judge also said having the time to spend watching his 16-year-old daughter, Brittany, drive during the first 180 days helped him drive home the importance of the rules of the road, such as no texting and driving.

“She knows if we see her texting, she won’t be driving for a while,” he said.

Brittany Judge doesn’t mind the restrictions placed on teen driving, and said the additional time driving with her parents made her more comfortable on the road. She got her license in December 2011.

“I had a good teacher,” she said as she patted her father on the shoulder. “It was scary at first. Having him around made it better.”