NEWS RELEASE

 

LIVES SAVED BY
STRONGER RULES FOR NEW DRIVERS

 

VANCOUVER Stronger rules for the Graduated Licensing Program (GLP), which took effect in 2003, saved
at least 31 lives and prevented 17,500 crashes involving new drivers in the
three-year period following the changes, Solicitor General Kash Heed announced
today.

 

This government
toughened the rules for new drivers six years ago, and it has been a public
safety success, Heed said. The number of crashes dropped by 28 per cent, and
most importantly there were 4,000 fewer crashes with
injuries.

 

ICBC examined crash
rates before and after the changes to the GLP, and used comparison groups of
other drivers to rule out demographics, weather or other external factors for
the decrease in crashes. In the programs first three years, the new driver
crash rate dropped by almost 16 per cent.

 

The GLP program began in 1998,
and in 2003 it was enhanced with these changes:

 

        
The learner stage was extended from six months
to one year.

        
The novice stage was extended from 18 months to
two years, with the provision the novice driver not have any driving
prohibitions for 24 consecutive months.

        
For learners, the supervisor age requirement was
raised from 19 to 25 years.

        
Novice drivers were restricted to carrying one
passenger unless accompanied by a supervisor, or unless the passengers are
immediate family members.

 

Increasing restrictions
for learner and novice drivers gives them time to learn
essential road safety skills and attitudes that save lives and reduce
injuries, Heed said.

 

Starting Jan. 1, 2010, drivers in the GLP program will not be permitted to use
hand-held or hands-free cellphones, or any other electronic device while
driving. New drivers, particularly the 16-24 age group, use electronic devices
more and that, combined with their inexperience, makes this group even more
vulnerable to driver distraction.

 

GLP has made roads safer for everyone, said
Fred Hess, ICBCs vice-president of licensing. We want to thank young drivers
for making smart choices in the GLP and helping to make our roads safer for everyone.

 

 

Heed and Hess announced ICBCs research findings
at Killarney Secondary school in Vancouver, where 31 students dramatized the
GLPs impact and the number of lives saved.

 

For more information on the Graduated Licensing
Program:

http://icbc.com/driver-licensing/getting-licensed/graduated-licensing.

 

For the full evaluation of the GLP
enhancements:

http://icbc.com/driver-licensing/getting-licensed/graduated-licensing/glp-report.

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