State Official Says Raising Minimum Age for Drivers Not Popular in S. D.

Balancing the need to drive and the need for safety is a tough call for South Dakota lawmakers, says state Rep. Garry Moore. But he says a call to raise the minimum age for driver’s licenses has never been warmly received in the state.

The recommendation came this week from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which said states should raise the minimum age to 17 or 18. That, says the institute, would improve safety and save lives.

Moore, a Yankton Democrat, says the Legislature has had the driving-age debate in previous years.

“And it’s never met with much favor in South Dakota,” he said. “And (it’s) due to the nature of South Dakota. We’re largely a rural state, and it becomes apparent that these kids need to have transportation to and from school, particularly if they’re involved in extracurricular activities.”

The wide open spaces of South Dakota mean someone has to be able to drive, he said.

“If we were an urban state with lots of big cities, it might be a different story. But in South Dakota, where your outlying areas just won’t allow that, I don’t think that going to 17 or 18 in South Dakota is going to meet with much legislative approval.”

Restrictions have been placed on 14- and 15-year-old drivers, said Moore.

“With the learner’s permit, the work permit, the school permit, they’re only allowed to drive during certain hours. It’s not like we give them free rein to drive wherever and whenever they want. They’re restricted as to when they can drive,” he said in an interview.

More than 5,000 U.S. teens die each year in car crashes. The rate of crashes, fatal and nonfatal, per mile driven for 16-year-old drivers is almost 10 times the rate for drivers ages 30 to 59, according to the National Highway Safety Administration. Many industrialized countries in Europe and elsewhere have a driving age of 17 or 18.

Topics Personal Auto