Massachusetts
Deaths in Crashes Involving Teen Drivers in Massachusetts
In 2008, 68 people were killed in crashes involving teen drivers in Massachusetts. Over the past five years, Massachusetts crashes involving teen drivers claimed 413 lives. Nationally, since 1999, more than 84,400 people have been killed in crashes involving teen drivers.
Graduated Driver Licensing Laws in Massachusetts
The current GDL law in Massachusetts includes the following components:
- A three-stage licensing system beginning at age 16 for learner’s permit, age 16 years and 6 months for the intermediate stage, and age 18 for full licensure
- A mandatory 6 month holding period for the learner’s permit stage
- A minimum of 40 hours of supervised practice driving during the learner’s permit stage
- A prohibition on unsupervised nighttime driving between 12:30 a.m. and 5 a.m. during the intermediate stage
- A passenger restriction prohibiting passengers younger than age 18 for the first 6 months after licensure
These changes are needed to improve Massachusetts’s GDL law and meet the requirements of the STANDUP Act
- Strengthen the passenger restriction to prohibit more than one non-familial passenger under the age of 21 unless a licensed driver over age 21 is in the vehicle, for the entire intermediate stage through age 17
- Add a prohibition on non-emergency use of cell phones and other communications devices , including texting while driving, during the learner’s permit and intermediate stages
