Young driver licensing systems in the U.S.

New drivers have elevated crash rates. This is particularly true for drivers younger than 18. Young novice drivers are at significant risk on the road because they lack both the judgment that comes with maturity and the skill that comes with experience. Graduated licensing is a system designed to delay full licensure while allowing beginners to obtain their initial experience under lower risk conditions.

There are three stages:

• a minimum supervised learner's period,
• an intermediate license (once the driving test is passed) that limits unsupervised driving in high-risk situations, and
• a full-privilege driver's license available after completion of the first two stages.

Beginners must remain in each of the first two stages for set minimum time periods. All 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia currently have three stages, but the systems vary in strength.

In an optimal system:

• the minimum age for a learner's permit is 16,
• the learner stage lasts at least 6 months, during which parents must certify at least 30-50 hours of supervised driving,
• and the intermediate stage lasts until at least age 18 and includes both a night driving restriction starting at 9 or 10 p.m. and a strict teenage passenger restriction allowing either no teenage passengers or no more than one.

Tables accessed via the navigation tabs above list licensing requirements for the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. During the 1990s, many states moved toward graduated licensing. Some have enacted virtually all the elements of graduated licensing, while others have enacted only parts. Another area in which the laws differ is enforcement. Some states prohibit police from stopping young drivers solely for night driving violations or passenger restrictions. This is known as secondary enforcement.