Why Should The Driving Age Be Raised To 21 Essay

Over the last twenty-two years, there have been more than 130,000 fatal teen crashes. Though these teenagers are legal, trained drivers, what is a solution to reduce the number of lives lost due to these lethal car crashes? Scientists believe that the solution to reducing the amount of deaths would be to raise the driving age and enforce stricter driving laws. Parents, however, are against raising the driving age as they would have to drive their teenager to the movies for a longer period of time. Thus, the driving age should be raised to twenty due to the maturity of people’s brains and understanding of consequences rather than depending on emotions and desires.

First, the driving age should be raised to twenty due to the gradual maturity

Teenagers’ brains heavily rely on their emotions rather than the potential consequences of actions. With the constant desire for pleasure, teenagers do not make decisions that reflect their character during the moment in time, which could ultimately lead to devastating consequences. When teenagers make the decision to drive past the speed limit, for example, their emotions are the main influence for their choice of action, and they do not acknowledge the consequences that are a result of their actions. During these situations, the prefrontal cortex, which is the underdeveloped part of the brain, is “all but useless”, forcing teenagers to have to make decisions depending on their emotions rather than the possible consequences of such actions. The prefrontal cortex is responsible for understanding the long-term consequences that would have a major influence on a teenager’s decision. However, it does not fully develop until the one’s twenties, leaving teenagers at risk while driving where they are forced to make precise decisions to sustain themselves. Allowing teenagers to drive at sixteen without the maturity of the prefrontal cortex is a significant factor in their fatal car crashes. With people driving at twenty, their understanding of potential consequences will make them less likely to commit premature decisions on the