? New requirements in Michigan's Graduated Driver Licensing program take effect Wednesday.
• New requirements in Michigan's Graduated Driver Licensing program take effect Wednesday.
DETROIT — As a driver-in-training in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Dylan Fox is learning to deal with common challenges such as snow and ice. Now he's got some more things to keep in mind: new state requirements that limit when he can drive and how many friends can tag along.
The 15-year-old from the Schoolcraft County community of Cooks will be among the first to face new restrictions to Michigan's Graduated Driver Licensing program. The changes for teen drivers with a level 2 intermediate license take effect Wednesday.
Fox is less than thrilled about the passenger provision, but he gets the overall point of the new rules of the road.
"I figure it's okay because it's (keeping us) safe," he said.
The new laws aim to strengthen the state's existing graduated driver's license program, first introduced in 1996. The program gradually increases privileges as drivers advance through the system and ends when they turn 18.
Drivers with the intermediate licenses won't be allowed to have more than one unrelated passenger younger than 21 unless accompanied by a parent or guardian or they are driving to and from school events. The law also prohibits the new teen drivers from getting behind the wheel between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. unless they are driving to and from work. The previous law allowed them to drive until midnight.
Rep. Richard LeBlanc, D-Westland, said late last year as the bill was passed that it could help "save lives and minimize distractions." That claim is backed up by a study published in 2007 by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, which showed greater restrictions were necessary to curb teen drivers' involvement in crashes.
Researchers found that teens have a higher risk for all types of crashes and are 2½ times as likely as adults to be in a crash. The risk of a crash increases when teens have other passengers in the car, including teens, and when they drive at night or on weekends.
C. Raymond Bingham, a research professor with the institute, said Michigan was at the forefront of states to enact graduated standards 15 years ago but fell behind in tightening them. He said nearly all states have some form of the standards and at least half have what he would consider strong programs.
"All the evidence that's out there ... suggests that what we can expect is a reduction in crashes and injuries related to them, including fatal injuries," Bingham said. "There's still more that could be done, but this is a really good step."
When Matthew Bozzo first heard about the restrictions he'll face as a new driver, he wasn't all that enthused.
"At first, I'm like, 'They really stink,"' said Bozzo, 16, who lives in the Detroit suburb of Riverview. "But when I think about it, they're not really terrible."
Bozzo starts the second segment of driver's training in April and said the longer hours he is required to spend in driver's education class and behind the wheel are difficult to juggle with homework and involvement in track and band.
It's worth it, he said, because the biggest reason to get a license is to "hang out with friends — and you don't want your parents to come pick you up at 11."
His mother, Sheryl Bozzo, said the additional requirements are a necessary adjustment for everybody.
"It's got to be part of our routine," said Sheryl Bozzo, who works for AAA Michigan as a project manager. The Dearborn-based auto club supported the legislation.
Still, she said, the best part of the legislation might be how it's giving parents more time to teach what they know about driving. Even if most teens are loath to admit their mothers and fathers know best, Bozzo said her son has said that his parents know something.
"He (said) he's learned far more by driving with mom and dad than anything he learned in a classroom setting," she said. "What that means to me is ... the graduated driving laws are forcing these kids to get the practice behind the wheel, rather than just sitting in class and going out and getting a license."
For Fox, getting a license is worth the extra work.
"It's definitely something you earn, and just like in life, you've got to earn it," he said.