Recently, the number of teen driving accidents nationwide experienced an increase compared to past years. Although this increase has been supported by several sources, Jason Hlavacs, the Director of the LT Drivers Ed program, believes that the number of teen accidents have always been high.

“Accidents among teen drivers are generally due to lack of experience, and it’s been a problem ever since teens were allowed to drive,” Hlavacs said. “Our program here does far beyond what other high schools and private firms do.”

In order to combat teen driving accidents in general, Hlavacs believes that LT’s Drivers Ed program has been doing all it can to fight this problem. The program includes nearly 40 class hours, which is 10 hours more than the state requirement, in addition to three extra hours of behind-the-wheel practice, he said.

Despite Hlavacs’ faith in the Drivers Ed program here at LT, statistics reveal a general growth of teen accidents. According the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 5,864 fatal driving accidents involving people between the ages of 16 to 20 in 2016 alone. This number is nearly a 10-percent increase compared to years past.

Certain teens have been a part of this upward trend in our community, including Tommy Pigatto ‘18, who experienced his own car accident in late August, about one year after he received his initial driver’s license.

“I was changing songs on the radio and all of a sudden I ran a red light and hit a car,” Pigatto said. “It was a very scary moment, and it taught me to avoid distractions while behind the wheel.”

To avoid future distractions and teen car crashes, Hlavacs gave out a few rules-of-thumb to be aware of when behind the wheel.

“Respect the speed limit, keep your eyes moving, and be aware of what is going on around you,” he said. “You can’t control what other people do on the road. All you can do is control your own environment, so it is important to do a good job.”