Disparities in Access to Driver Education for Teens as a Health and Mobility Equity Issue

High crash rates among U.S. young drivers are influenced by maturity, vehicle dynamics, socioeconomic status, and environment, with greater impacts on minority and disadvantaged groups. Despite the potential of driver education and Graduated Driving Licensing (GDL) programs to improve skills, disparities in access remain a concern. This study analyzes a dataset from Ohio, including Virtual Driving Assessment (VDA) scores, licensing data, and Census tract information for 22,490 drivers under 25 from 2017 to 2019. Using visualization and inferential statistics, the authors examined how driver training, age at licensure, urbanicity, and socioeconomic status relate to skill development. Results show that formal training and early licensure is associated with traffic rule adherence and driving consistency. However, young drivers from lower-income areas struggle with rule compliance and throttle control, likely due to limited training and vehicle quality. Young drivers from rural areas perform better in speed management and rule adherence. These findings highlight the need to reassess driver education and road design to better support safety and skill acquisition among young drivers.

• Record URL:
  • https://ppms.cit.cmu.edu/media/project_files/Ryerson_Megan_473.pdf
• 
• Summary URL:
  • https://ppms.cit.cmu.edu/projects/detail/473
• Record URL:
  • https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/77503
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This document was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
• Corporate Authors:

  University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

  Department of City and Regional Planning
  210 South 34th Street,127 Myerson Hall
  Philadelphia, PA  United States  19104

  Safety21 University Transportation Center

  Carnegie Mellon University
  Pittsburgh, PA  United States  15213

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Ryerson, Megan S
  • 0000-0002-8843-3286
  • Dong, Xiaoxia
  • 0000-0002-3907-3237
  • Wu, Jasmine Siyu
  • 0000-0002-3855-4872
  • Walshe, Elizabeth A
  • 0000-0002-0466-4272
  • Winston, Flaura K
  • 0000-0001-6632-1403
• Publication Date: 2024-8-1

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: Figures; Maps; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 43p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Driver education; Driver performance; Equity; Low income groups; Rural areas; Socioeconomic factors; Teenage drivers; Urban areas
• Geographic Terms: Ohio
• Subject Areas: Education and Training; Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01931856
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 473
• Contract Numbers: 69A3552344811
• Files: UTC, NTL, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Sep 25 2024 9:23AM