Last week, a group of 100 New Jersey high school students gathered at Rutgers University for the state’s first Teen Safe Driving Summit. Organized and carried out by a group of students, the summit aimed to reduce car accidents by educating students on safe driving techniques. In addition, organizers hoped to empower attendees to establish educational programs on safe driving at their home schools.
A major component of the safe driving summit was to educate students on the state’s Graduated Driver License (GDL) program. According to the GDL law, drivers under the age of 21 or who have never had a driver’s license are required to complete a period of supervised driving before getting a license. In addition, drivers in the GDL program are prohibited from driving under certain circumstances. GDL drivers may not drive after 11 p.m., for example, and may not talk or text on a cell phone, even if the device is hands-free.
In addition, the summit focused on Kyleigh’s Law, which took effect in May of 2010. The law, named after a 16-year-old girl who was killed in a car accident in 2006, requires that New Jersey drivers under the age of 21 in the GDL program display a red decal on their license plates. The goal of the law is to alert New Jersey police of young drivers’ age, and to help police enforce GDL laws.
The event, which was also attended by over 50 parents and school faculty members, was sponsored by the New Jersey Teen Safe Driving Coalition.
If you or a family member has been injured as a result of unsafe driving, please contact Breslin & Breslin for a free consultation.
Source: MyCentralJersey.com, “New Jersey teens get a crash course in safe driving,” Gene Racz, 15 July 2011
