While the government is going to lower the age at which you can pass the driving license to 17, Pierre Lagache, vice-president of the League against road violence, reminds on franceinfo that “young people always pay a heavy price for safety road”.
Getting a driver’s license at age 17 is a “announcement effect among young people” Who “jeopardizes their safety”, denounces Pierre Lagache, vice-president of the League against road violence, on franceinfo this Tuesday, after the announcement of Elisabeth Borne. The Prime Minister confirmed “that from January 2024, you can pass your license at 17 and drive at 17”.
Are you convinced by this measure?
No way. We are both worried about the issue of road safety for our young people, and quite skeptical about the issue of mobility. It should be remembered that young people unfortunately still pay a heavy price for road safety since they represent 9% of the age group and 17% of road deaths. On this age group of 18 to 24 years, we already have an observation that is not satisfactory, which is in a way a bit of an acknowledgment of failure. So, rather than focusing on this issue of road safety and the protection of our young people, we are expanding the age group. It’s a curious attitude and it’s really very worrying.
The Prime Minister highlights these young people who cannot move to rural areas. This could enable them to have access to learning, to employment, to leisure. So why not ?
Rurality is often put forward, as in the road safety argument. If I take the example of the 80 km/h limit on departmental roads, we were told that rural areas would be extremely penalized. Result of the races, we lose one second over two hours of time per kilometer traveled. Our objective in rural areas is first and foremost to protect our young people.
>> Driving license at 17: why this government idea does not hold water, according to sector specialists
Do we have enlightened studies, expert opinions that reassure us on this issue? I see no argument advanced by the government on this issue of security. Indeed, some countries are at 17, but I think that when we take this type of measure which involves the safety of our young people, we are still waiting for more reflection and expertise on the subject.
For you, is it communication? A populist measure?
We understand that there were some announcement effects to be made with young people. Road safety and learning to drive were identified as a good argument. I’m afraid it’s just a matter of communication. It’s a measure that will please some young people, that’s obvious. Perhaps not the majority moreover, because, when questioned, young people are also lucid about their abilities and their limits. Unanimity is not necessarily there when they are asked about the age at which they feel ready to be autonomous in driving. We have had successes with accompanied driving. Why not make it a priority to increase this good practice which has given results? Sounds like an interesting project to us.