To the Editor:

Six months after one has obtained their drivers permit, they are allowed to get their license. In the state of Pennsylvania, the age that one gets their permit is 16.

Some legislators are arguing for a national graduated driver licensing law to replace the separate individual state regulations.

The statistics in 2009 according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showed 16 year olds have crash rates higher than drivers of any other age. It was also noted car collisions were the leading cause of death in 13 to 19 year olds.

I believe the legal age a young person should be to obtain their license should not be altered. The extent of one's ability to perform the correct driving task while in a car on the road does not correlate to their age. Good driving habits are learned through experience. Extending the driving age almost two years more does not mean that the person driving the car will gain skill. They will get better only if they practice continuously.

From the time period of 2005 to 2010, the fatality count in 16 and 17 year olds had gone from 881 to 408. Alex Koroknay-Palicz, of the National Youth Rights Association said, "Studies show that it is inexperience, and not age, that causes accidents. Raising the driving age will just create inexperienced, accident-prone drivers at 18 instead of 16."

While others think it would be a good idea to raise the driving age to 18, I do not. There are ways to improve the bad driving seen in teens. Instead of making the individuals wait until they are 18 to be a licensed driver, schools should encourage their students to begin driving profusely once they get their drivers permit because good driving is based solely on experience.

Meghan Bodenstein

10th grade student

Emmaus High School