Good afternoon Chairman Patterson and Committee Members. Thank you for providing me the opportunity to talk with you today about legislation to add a cell phone use restriction to Michigan’s existing graduated driver licensing system. This is an important step that will reduce needless deaths and injuries on Michigan’s highways.

The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent Federal agency charged by Congress to investigate transportation crashes, determine their probable cause and make recommendations to prevent their recurrence. The recommendations that arise from our investigations and safety studies are our most important product. The Safety Board has neither regulatory authority nor grant funds. In our 38-year history, organizations and government bodies have adopted more than 80 percent of our recommendations.

The Safety Board has recognized for many years that traffic crashes are one of this nation’s most serious transportation safety problems. More than 90 percent of all transportation related deaths each year result from highway crashes. A disproportionate number of these highway crashes involve teenage drivers between the ages of 15 to 20, young people who have only recently gotten their driver’s license.

In a 1993 review of underage drinking and licensing for young drivers under the age of 21, the Safety Board recommended that States implement graduated driver licensing (GDL), the comprehensive provisional license system for teen drivers. In 2002, the Safety Board revisited this issue and added a passenger restriction to its GDL recommendation. Then, following the investigation of a Maryland crash that killed 5 people in early 2003, the Safety Board recommended that a restriction on cell phone use while driving be added to the graduated licensing system.

In spite of the revolutionary changes in driver licensing practices that have been adopted in recent years, teen drivers continue to be involved in an alarming number of crashes. Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death among teenagers today, accounting for 40 percent of all deaths among 15-20 year olds. Young drivers age 15 through age 20 make up less than 7 percent of the driving population, but compose more than 13.5 percent of the drivers involved in fatal crashes. Further, more than 21 percent of all highway fatalities occur in crashes involving teen drivers. Crash statistics for Michigan are just as ominous. While young drivers are a little more than 7 percent of the driving population, they are more than 14.2 percent of the drivers involved in fatal crashes. More than 22 percent of Michigan’s highway fatalities occur in crashes involving teen drivers.

Young drivers have been the focus of U.S. licensing systems primarily because they constitute the largest group of beginners and have the highest crash risk. Studies by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the States and others have shown that 16-year-olds are more likely to be involved in single vehicle crashes, be responsible for the crash, be cited for speeding, have more passengers than older drivers, and be unbelted. Such fatal crashes are most likely to occur from 10 p.m. to midnight, primarily on Friday and Saturday nights.

Michigan is to be commended for being one of the first States to adopt a comprehensive graduated licensing system. The current program includes a 3-phase system with a learner's permit, an intermediate, license, and a full license. Young drivers must hold their learner’s permit for a minimum of 6 months, complete driver education, and obtain at least 50 hours of supervised driving. There is a midnight to 5:00 a.m. driving restriction during the intermediate phase. However, there is no restriction on cell phone use by young drivers when they are holding a learner’s or intermediate license.

We all recognize that cell phone use is becoming increasingly prevalent. The use of these devices has more than tripled, from 60 million subscribers in 1998 to more than 197 million today.

Likewise, increasing numbers of drivers are using cell phones. The National Highway Transportation Safety administration (NHTSA) has just released research documenting that an estimated 4 percent of drivers were using hand held cell phones, during daylight hours, in 2002. This translates into approximately 600,000 drivers on the road at any time during the day using hand-held phones. That was a 33 percent increase in 2 years. When combined with data from other surveys about hands-free cell phone use, NHTSA concluded that nearly 900,000 drivers (6 percent) are using a telephone at any given time.

Preliminary results from a survey in 2004 indicate further increases in usage. Driver usage of hand-held cell phones reached 5 percent in 2004, and the use of all phones – both hand-held and hands-free – reached 8 percent. No information is available about text messaging and its use while driving. However, just this week we have been notified of a fatal crash in Hawaii that involved a lane crossover into oncoming traffic. Local media report that the driver of the vehicle that crossed over into oncoming traffic was text messaging at the time. That is an example of why we recommend using the term “interactive wireless communication device” in lieu of “cell phone” in the law.

The NHTSA survey also found that cell phone use increased among young adults, age 16-24, from 3 percent in 2000 to 5 percent in 2002. That rate is higher than any other age category.

In 2003, the Safety Board examined the role that driver distraction plays in motor vehicle crashes, especially when the driver is inexperienced. The Board concluded that current State laws are inadequate to protect young, novice drivers from distractions that can lead to crashes. The Board recommended that States enact legislation to prohibit holders of learner’s permits and intermediate licenses from using interactive wireless communication devices while driving.

The recommendation is derived from the Board’s investigation of a Ford Explorer Sport collision with a Ford Windstar minivan and a Jeep Grand Cherokee on Interstate 95/495 near Largo, Maryland. On February 1, 2002, at about 8:00 p.m., a Ford Explorer Sport was traveling northbound on the outer loop of the Capitol Beltway (Interstate 95/495) near Largo, Maryland at an estimated speed of 70 to 75 mph, when it veered off the left side of the roadway, crossed over the median, climbed up a guardrail, flipped over and landed on top of a southbound Ford Windstar minivan. Subsequently, a 1998 four-door Jeep Grand Cherokee ran into the rear of the minivan. Of the eight people involved in the accident, five adults were killed, one adult sustained minor injuries, and two children were uninjured.

This crash involved multiple risk factors, some of which are associated with young drivers. The unbelted crash driver, who had only an estimated 50 hours of driving experience, was operating a short-wheelbase sport utility vehicle, with which she was unfamiliar. She was driving 15-20 miles over the speed limit, while talking on a handheld wireless telephone.

Learning how to drive and becoming comfortable in traffic requires all the concentration a novice driver can muster. A 2001 study found that even experienced drivers engaged in wireless telephone conversations were unaware of traffic movements around them.

In January 2002, New Jersey became the first State to restrict cell phone use by young novice drivers. Its new law prohibited holders of special learner’s permits, driver’s examination permits, and provisional driver’s licenses from using any interactive wireless communication device while operating a motor vehicle. Today there are 10 States that restrict cell phone use by drivers with an instructional and/or intermediate license. The Safety Board recommends that you prohibit the use of any wireless communication device, hand-held or hands-free, by holders of learner’s permits or provisional licenses, under age 18.

Let me also briefly mention one other important improvement to Michigan’s graduated licensing system that is now pending before the Senate. That is the addition of a restriction on the number of passengers that drivers in the graduated licensing system may carry. Teen drivers drive with more passengers than older drivers, and these passengers are usually the drivers’ peers. These passengers create a deadly combination of distraction, inexperience and immaturity. The relative risk of death among 16- and 17-year-old drivers increases when there is a single passenger, and that risk grows each time the number of passengers grows. Carrying at least three teen passengers results in a threefold increase in the probability of a teen in that vehicle suffering a fatal injury.

Based on the available research and accident data, the Safety Board concluded that by restricting to zero or one the number of passengers carried by young novice drivers during the provisional (intermediate) license stage, States can reduce crashes involving young novice drivers and reduce fatalities among teenage occupants. The Board, therefore, believes that Michigan should restrict young novice drivers with a graduated license from carrying more than one passenger under the age of 20 until they receive an unrestricted license or for at least 6 months (whichever is longer). Currently, 20 States and the District of Columbia, including your neighbors of Indiana, Illinois, and Wisconsin, have enacted passenger restrictions.

Highway crashes involving young drivers will remain a serious and persistent problem unless concrete and comprehensive steps are taken. Our young people are this nation’s most valuable resource, and should be nurtured and protected. Too many of them are being killed and injured unnecessarily.

The Safety Board is so convinced of the life saving benefit of graduated licensing with a cell phone restriction that it recently was added to our list of “Most Wanted” safety recommendations. Adding a cell phone use restriction, such as provided in H.B. 5133, will significantly strengthen the graduated licensing system in Michigan. It will save both young lives and the lives of others involved in crashes with young drivers.

Thank you again for providing me the opportunity to testify about this important initiative. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.