Cardiff University research shows benefits of graduated driver licensing

Intermediate phase between the preliminary and full driving licence could save up to 200 lives a year.

Cardiff University research has shown that the introduction of graduated driver licensing (GDL) could save up to 200 lives every year.

Every day four people are killed or seriously injured in crashes involving young drivers, and although road traffic accidents in Britain are going down, crashes involving new young drivers are increasing.

GDL adds an intermediate phase between the preliminary and full driving licence, which can last up to two years, and means the newly qualified young driver is allowed to drive without supervision, but not at night, not with similar aged passengers and is not permitted to consume alcohol.

It allows new drivers to gain experience under conditions of reduced risk and research estimates that it could help save up to 200 lives every year, avoid 14,000 casualties, and save the UK economy £890m.

GDL has been introduced in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and most parts of America as a way of cutting down unnecessary death and injury on the roads.

The study was compiled by analysing road accident data from 2000 to 2007.

Dr Sarah Jones, School of Medicine, said: "Most people in this country know someone who has been touched by the death or injury of a young driver."

"The cost to the NHS would be significantly reduced. And it’s not only lives that would be saved by having GDL – insurance costs should drop substantially if the number of crashes involving young drivers were reduced."

Further information:
Cardiff University