Kent mother calls on government to make young drivers safer
New figures say more than 23,000 people have been killed or seriously injured in road accidents involving drivers aged 17 to 24 over the past five years
The Department of Transport data shows that among these incidents, 7,500 crashes involved young drivers, 4,000 were passengers, and 11,600 other road users, including pedestrians.
These young drivers account for around 20% of serious road accidents, underscoring their risk profile.
Young drivers are notably more involved in single-vehicle crashes leading to death or serious injury, with nearly a third of such accidents compared to 23% for all drivers.
Graduated Licenses
In Northern Ireland, graduated driving licences are soon to come into effect, introducing a six-month wait for practical tests, passenger restrictions at night, and R plate display requirements for two years.
Similar schemes have demonstrated crash reductions of up to 40% in countries like Australia and Canada.
Keena Entwistle from Broadstairs, whose son Ethan tragically died in a car accident in October 2023, is advocating for improved road safety among young drivers.
Speaking to Hits and Greatest Hits Radio Kent she said:
"You think to yourself, the government really needs to try to do something. These young people, they're our future. And it's like a mass extinction of them.
"There's so many things that we can do to help protect them that works. We know the graduated driving license system works. We can see evidence of it in other countries.
"And the young people that I've spoke to, and I said, 'look, we're not trying to curtail freedoms or anything. We're trying to protect your life'. And you can see them thinking, 'actually, six months. Is it that long to actually wait?'
"It sounds a long time, but when you think, actually, it's not very long at all.
"So we just need to be able to protect our young people, but the numbers desperately need to come down."
Keena's campaign focuses on educating young people about road safety from a parent's perspective, emphasising the importance of speaking up when they feel unsafe in a vehicle.
She has been actively visiting local sixth forms and colleges where Ethan and his younger brother attended, urging young people to prioritise their safety and encouraging them to use tools like car safety hammers.
The role of Parents
In response to the new figures on young driving incidents, families are urged to help young drivers manage risks, but Keena stated that this doesn't account for the needs of young drivers to be independent adults:
"That's the thing, when your kids are younger, yes, parents can supervise them all the time. But when they're young adults, they want their freedom.
"I mean, my younger son is now driving. I have him on the Life 360 app. Every time I know he's out driving, I'm watching it.
"I can't curtail his freedom. I couldn't stop him from having his driving lessons because it's his life, it's his future as well.
"It's not just the parents' responsibility, it's everybody's responsibility.
"I mean, they always say it takes a village to bring up a child, but it takes a village to look after the public in general as well.
"So yeah, parents could talk about road safety, but the government need to be helping in that as well."
Government Reponse
A Department for Transport spokesperson said:
“Our first road safety strategy in more than a decade is tackling the root causes of deaths and injuries on our roads, and we are consulting on minimum learning periods, lowering the alcohol limit for novice drivers, and cracking down on drug driving.”