WETHERSFIELD, Conn. — It's been 15 years since the state’s teen driving laws first went into effect.
At the time, that bill was controversial. But now, the data shows overall it has reduced the number of fatal accidents for teenage drivers.
"The teen driver laws were too late for my son but they’re not too much," said Tim Hollister, a parent and an author.
Back in 2006, Tim's son, 17-year-old Reid Hollister from West Hartford went for a late-night drive with two of his friends.
"It was a perfect storm of what you see for causes of teen driver crashes," said Hollister.
Police say Reid's car ended up crashing near exit 34 in Plainville on 84 West. The left side of his chest was impaled from the impact.
"What I think about almost every single day if the crash had been 18 inches forward or backward he probably would have been hurt but not been killed. This was the impact in the worst place at a pretty high rate of speed," said Hollister.
A few months after Reid’s death, six other teenage drivers were killed in six weeks. That's when state officials came together to create a task force to stop more lives from being lost.
A key member of that task force was Tim.
"It was very much sharing information with parents and teen drivers when there was nothing else comparable available," said Hollister.
In August of 2008, the teen driving law was passed, creating a curfew and limiting the number of people who can be in the car with young drivers.
"We’ve seen a dramatic shift in fatalities and accidents in teens and we were one of the leaders in the United States after we passed those laws," said Commissioner of the Department of Motor Vehicles, Tony Guerrera.
Now 15 years later, the laws have reduced serious teen driver injuries in Connecticut from more than 100 in 2007 down to 14 so far in 2023. Fatalities in teen drivers have reduced from 18 in 2007 down to 2 in 2023.
Guerrera says the state has come a long way, but there's still more that needs to be done to protect young drivers, especially when it comes to technology and distracted driving.
"All it takes is a split second of your eyes off the roadway," said Guerrera. "Pay attention get off the phone and put it down."
While the laws weren't in place to save Reid’s life, his father is making sure his legacy lives on.
He’s published a book to teach others about the responsibility of being behind the wheel, so no other family faces the same road.
"He sent me on a path and you just try to take the lemons and make lemonade," said Hollister.
With these laws. teen drivers now also have to take a two-hour course with a parent, which officials say has also led to a big shift in families supporting the laws to help their children be safer behind the wheel.
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