Make it a Dunne deal - stop kidult road kill

The call for a saner driving age issued by United Future today is fully supported by the Candor Trust. "The evidence that teenagers are less able to achieve high driving skill, is incontrovertible," says Coordinator Rachael Ford.

Not only are we placing young people at risk with our lack of evidence based regulation and poor training standards, but allowing kidult drivers of fifteen has a dangerous creeping effect.

This surely causes some youth assume at twelve, thirteen or fourteen they are equipped to give it a go. "We're now seeing drivers under fifteen killed in our toll, one's who can barely see out over the steering wheel - that's third world".

With the toughening up on youth via the targeting of an identified "out group" the boy racer's, half of whom are girls, some young people who mess up now live in fear and act out of impulse and anxiety when behind the wheel.

They can be out for a cruise and breaking all conditions as is commonly acknowledged to be standard practise in the real world when they get cornered, and then lack of maturity sees all hell can break loose.

Police are put in a real predicament when they see any improper or suspicious conduct by youth, or alternately if youth see them and freak out so the fight or flight hormones kick in.

Last month two Tauranga fourteen year olds led Police on a 100km chase. Three young men who led Police on a high speed chase in Auckland perhaps due to fear of drink driving charges, died last Christmas after crashing on St Lukes offramp.

No reminder is surely needed about the child who took his new car out for a spin and almost killed a toddler who today is struggling still, when he lost control lately.

Then yesterday morning a learner driver led police on a 100km chase through South Canterbury early yesterday morning. The 15-year-old reached speeds of up to 160km/h and carried the precious lives of five passengers.

Hopefully their parents may think twice about letting them associate with fifteen year olds with cars, in future. Many parents today fail to realise that high proportions of teens killed on the road are out of it on cannabis

Peter Dunnes suggestion of raising the bar, but of also allowing a special dispensation for rural youth is a life saving proposal of merit that should be given some very serious consideration.

ENDS

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