'Deadliest Days Of Summer' Increase Concern For Teen Drivers: AAA

WASHINGTON, DC — A year after 72 people were killed in Virginia in automobile accidents involving teenage drivers in 2020, officials are warning parents of an increasingly dangerous time period between Memorial Day and Labor Day when many fatal accidents take place on regional highways.

Teen driving deaths have increased nearly 12 percent in some states around the country in the past year, according to a news release issued Thursday by AAA. Officials have deemed the period between the holidays as the “100 Deadliest Days of Summer” and are warning parents and others about the reality of these deadly crashes involving young drivers.

AAA officials said in the release that teenage drivers have the highest crash rate of any age group of drivers. Motor vehicle accidents are also the leading cause of death among teens, both those who are driving and who are passengers in accidents, AAA said.

Now, as more teenagers have received doses of the coronavirus vaccines, experts worry that more freedom to be out and about, coupled with the number of fatal accidents involving young drivers, could prove to be a reason for concern.

Of the 72 Virginia residents who were killed last year in accidents involving young drivers, 30 of the deaths took place between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Nationwide, more than 7,000 people have been killed in accidents involving teen drivers between 2010 and 2019. The total number of accidents over those 100 days equates to more than seven people dying per day each summer compared to six people dying per day the rest of the year, AAA said in the release.

In Virginia, 244 teenage drivers and passengers died in car crashes between 2015 and 2019, according to data released by the Governors Highway Safety Association. The total compares to the 130 teenage drivers and passengers who were killed in Maryland during the same time period while just five teens died in the District of Columbia.

The data also showed that in addition to the total number of teen fatalities, the fatal accidents in Virginia included 120 deaths in which speed was a factor as compared to 65 in Maryland and four in Washington, DC.

“There are more daily deaths in crashes involving teen drivers during the summer months than the rest of the year because teens tend to have more unstructured time behind the wheel,” Kurt E. Gray, director, Driver Education, AAA Club Alliance, Inc, said in the news release.

AAA officials said that many of the accidents are caused because of teen drivers’ inexperience. About 72 percent of teen drivers between the ages of 16-18, have admitted to engaging in at least one of the following risky behaviors over the past 30 days.

Driving 10 mph over the speed limit on a residential street (47%).

• Driving 15 mph over the speed limit on a freeway (40%).
• Texting (35%).
• Red-light running (32%).
• Aggressive driving (31%).
• Drowsy driving (25%).
• Driving without a seatbelt (17%).

“With teens crashing at a rate four times higher than adults, parents remain the best line of defense to keep everyone safe behind the wheel,” John B. Townsend II, AAA Mid-Atlantic’s Manager of Public and Government Affairs, said in the news release.

“It’s never too soon to educate teens on the dangers of distracted driving, speeding, and the impairing effects of alcohol and marijuana. But parents can’t just tell teens about the dangers. Parents must also eschew engaging in risky driving behaviors and ensure they are modeling good behavior at all points.”