While lawmakers debate how to keep up road construction in the nation’s fastest growing state, some want to focus on ways to make highways safer.
These bills are designed to reduce the risk of driving, since car crashes are the primary cause of injuries and death in Arizona.
Vehicular accidents took the life of one person in the state every seven hours in 2005. These crashes also resulted in economic loses of about $3.4 billion, according to a state report.
One Republican senator observed that if the number of fatalities caused by drunk drivers had been the result of a disease outbreak or terrorism, people would immediately be scrambling to create task forces to address the issue.
This week, the Senate Transportation Committee approved a proposal by Sen. Barbara Leff, R-11, to impose restrictions on young drivers. By doing so, lawmakers signaled their resolve to bring Arizona closer to conforming with what is considered accepted wisdom in many other states, which is that youngsters need more guidance before driving on their own.
Under S1347, a person under 18 would not be allowed to drive between midnight and 5 a.m. unless accompanied by a parent or legal guardian for the six months after getting a Class G license.
The move would take Arizona off the list of only five states that do not provide for either nighttime driving restrictions or passenger limitations for teenage drivers, but it would most likely elicit groans from youngsters eager to take on the driving world.
The bill also prohibits a teenage driver from taking more than one passenger, unless they are siblings or the driver is accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
The measure got the nod of four senators and the disapproval of one, Sen. Pamela Gorman, D-6.
Gorman explained her opposition to the bill by saying she does not think a 21-year-old who can buy alcohol is a safer driver than a minor.
A penalty of $75 for first time offenders is also unlikely to deter teenagers, she said.
The bill also seems to penalize group dating, which Gorman said she finds largely beneficial.
“I don’t know if you all have sisters and brothers, but sisters and brothers in the car are dangerous … they fight like cats and dogs a lot of times,” she added, pointing out that the bill allows driving with more than one passenger if they are siblings.
“The intention of the bill is to put reasonable restrictions on brand new drivers who are not experienced and who are very young,” countered Leff shortly after seeing her bill clear the committee.
“The No. 1 reason for this is the safety of the other children and for the parents who don’t know,” she said, adding she does not think kids 16 and under should be out after midnight anyway.
As written, a driver would have to be stopped for another offense before being cited.
The bill allows teens to drive without being cited if they can present a notarized letter from parents or school or religious officials proving they are on their way to, or coming from, an event.
The bill now goes to the full Senate for consideration.
Arizona has had a graduated licensing program since 1999, awarding a separate license class for people under 18. Such a program places certain restrictions on younger drivers.
Currently, a person may apply for an instructional permit at 15 years and 7 months, allowing the teenager behind the wheel as long as a licensed driver accompanies him or her.
After five months and completing 25 hours of supervised driving practice, with five of those hours at night, a person may apply for a Class G license.
A National Highway Traffic Highway Safety Administration report said 16-year-olds are 15 times most likely to crash than those four years older. The report also said while teen drivers make up only 7 percent of the driving population, they are responsible for 14 percent of accidents.
“Recognizing that new teenage drivers as a population are among the poorest drivers, both in terms of statistics and by reputation, Arizona would benefit from the adoption of tested and proven intermediate licensing steps for new teen drivers,” S1437’s supporters said in a position paper.
Indeed, the Senate research unit cited a report by the Georgia Department of Public Safety, which noted a 26 percent decrease in accidents among drivers ages 16 and 17 after a graduated licensing program was established.
On Feb. 5, senators heard from the measure’s supporters, one of them citing a AAA study stating that 63.5 percent of people killed in teen-driver crashes are people other than the teen driver.
In Arizona, that number is 74.5 percent, said the report, which also quoted another study that said the risk of crashes involving teenage drivers increases exponentially with each additional passenger.
During the hearing, a mother lamented how her child was killed after climbing into a car with a 16-year-old driver. She would never have allowed her child to do so had she known it, she said, saying the bill could prevent similar heartaches in the future.
SB 1347’s provisions include the following:
*Reduces by one month the age at which a person is eligible for an instructional permit to 15 years and 6 months from 15 years and 7 months.
*Requires the person supervising a driver to be at least 21 years old.
*Extends the time that an instructional permit is valid to 7 months from 6 months.
*Increases the time that an applicant for a class G license or class M motorcycle license must hold an instructional permit to 6 months from 5 months.
*Increases the number of hours of supervised driving practice required to apply for a license to 30 from 25, and increases the number of night driving hours to 10 from 5.
Applicants for a class M motorcycle license or motorcycle endorsement who are under 18 years of age must complete 30 hours of motorcycle driving practice.
The bill fines the violator $75 for first offense, $100 for second offense, and $100 for a third violation as well as suspension of the driver’s license for 30 days.
Those going to or coming from specific events, such as a religious gathering, are exempted, according to the bill.
Other road bills
Other bills seeking minor changes in road rules have also been approved at the committee level.
Leff proposes to increase the fines against truck drivers whose load leaks or drops on the street.
Under S1176, the fine for a second violation within 5 years is increased to $500 from $350. If the dropped or leaked load causes an accident with serious physical injury, the fine is increased to $1,000 from $500, and the driver becomes guilty of a class 3 misdemeanor.
If the accident results in a death, the driver likewise would be guilty of class 3 misdemeanor, in addition to having to pay a current fine of $1,000. Two committees have already given the measure the green light.
Sen. John Huppenthal, the majority whip, also wants to restrict trucks heavier than 26,000 pounds and vehicles with a trailer to the right lane on highways.
His bill wants to ensure that on roads with three or more lanes, big trucks stay in the two right lanes.
“The states that have those laws believe that it creates safer roads because it reduces the conflict between vehicles and trucks by keeping them on the right lane, and you have fewer lane changes by the big trucks. Lane changes by big trucks are unsafe,” he said.
In 2002, for example, large trucks were involved in more than 400,000 accidents nationwide, resulting in the death of 4,500 persons, according to reports.
In Arizona, accidents involving large trucks and semi-trailers killed more than 80 people and injured more than 1,000 others in 2005, according to the Arizona Motor Vehicle Division.
“The challenge that you have in Arizona though is that we don’t have the same road structures that they do back East. We have fewer three-lane roads,” Huppenthal said.
Huppenthal’s bills on road safety were prompted by two constituents, one of who saw the advantages of restricting big trucks to the right lanes and another who felt the need for a standard rule governing the act of turning left.
The latter constituent, he said, runs a drivers’ education program. “He was talking about the difference between cities. Different cities have different laws on left turn using the center turn lane and he feels we need to have a standard set of rules,” Huppenthal said.
The senator said he welcomes more analysis on the matter and encourages people to present their views during committee hearings.
His colleague in the Republican caucus, Sen. Jay Tibshraeny, R-21, has run a bill seeking to clarify an existing federal law on the use of HOV lanes.
Tibshraeny’s proposal expands the list of vehicles permitted on the HOV lane to include motorcycles and public buses, regardless of the number of their passengers.
The measure was approved by the Senate, 27-0, earlier this month.
The aim is to conform state laws to federal laws which allow motorcycles and public vehicles to use the HOV lane.
To a large extent, state laws mirror the federal laws on the subject. Both require at least two passengers to be able to use the usually faster lane. But Arizona is silent on motorcycle and public buses. Recently, a motorcycle driver has been cited for violating this double-occupancy requirement.
Tibshraeny said the court later threw out the case.
“That bill is to conform state law to federal law,” he said. “There was a little confusion in the state. So this is just to clear up any confusion that there may be.”
Expounding on the idea of putting a motorcycle and a bus — and therefore a small vehicle and a huge one on the same lane — the senator said it may actually be safer for both types of vehicles to stay in one area “instead of darting in and out of traffic.”