Curious Snippets

The latest piece of useful research to come out of the Commons transport committee suggests the age at which teenager should be allowed to drive alone with a full license should be raised to 18, although they should still be able to learn at 17.

They want to see a zero alcohol limit for 12 months after candidates pass their driving test (I think they mean zero alcohol in the blood when driving, not a complete ban!) and a ban on newly-qualified drivers from carrying passengers aged 10-20 between 11pm and 5am - reflecting the number of young people killed on the way home from pubs, clubs or parties.

Ok. Now I started learning to drive when I turned 17 and passed my test when I was 17 in March. I finished my A-levels just before my 18th birthday and already had set up my business. I needed to drive well before my 18th Birthday to business meetings. I was not going to get my parents out of bed at 4am to drive me to the place we held our technology trial so that I could set everything up for the day ahead.

Most people who learn to drive take a few months, so what advantage is there of increasing the age limit by a few months? All it does is to erect a barrier for those who are perfectly sensible drivers who end up being punished for the reckless activities of others. I can understand the zero alcohol limit, and the ban on other teenagers in the car. But surely the reason most accidents happen with new drivers is because they are trying to impress their mates. If they are alone in the car they are probably better drivers.

This is just another illiberal piece of legislation that further erodes our liberties and undermines the use of common sense. In addition, does the government think that a law will prevent some of these teenagers from driving alone anyway? The law abiding will continue to be punished while the law breaking will carry on as normal.

Tags: Driving Age - 18 - Illiberal - Authoritarian - Nonsensical