Letters: Age for driver's license must be raised

Philadelphia Daily News, July, 2008

ONCE AGAIN, two teenagers have died in a car crash in West Whiteland.

How many more teen drivers must die before Pennsylvania raises the driving age to 19?

Not that 19-year-olds are any more competent to drive, but it would prevent 16- and 17-year-olds from driving - and that's the point.

These teens (Casey Russo and driver Robert Melson, both 16) were friends. They both liked skateboarding, which is a high-risk activity, and speed is a factor. Teen drivers sometimes think they can take their devil-may-care attitude on the road - and death occurs.

Teen drivers are also a disaster to the rest of us on the roads. They are totally incapable of driving responsibly. Neither victim in the most recent crash was buckled up. This is another hard lesson for teen...