You've Spoken on New Teen Driver Rules

Gov. Tom Corbett (R) on Tuesday signed House Bill 9, also known as "Lacey's Law," intended to make teen driving safer. 

Patch launched a poll Oct.1 on our Lehigh Valley sites asking what users think of the new regulations, which include:

• For the first six months, a driver under 18 will not be permitted to have more than one friend under 18 as a passenger unless they are accompanied by a parent/guardian.
• After six months, they may have up to three passengers under 18, as long as they are free of violations or were not responsible for an accident.
• Supervised, behind-the-wheel training required for permit-holders under age 18 rises from 50 to 65 hours. Ten of the added hours are for nighttime driving and five additional hours are spent driving in poor weather.
• Drivers and passengers under 18 must wear a seatbelt or they can be stopped solely for that violation and fined $75.

We asked,

Here how you voted in our unscientific poll:

• Good idea. They'll make our teens and our roads safer. 102 (56%)
• Too restrictive. Another move towards a nanny state. 21 (11%)
• While they're at it,  state lawmakers should reinstate a helmet law for motorcycle riders. 56 (31%)

Total votes: 179

Two Patch readers contacted us objecting to the third answer choice. They noted that there is a helmet law for teen motorcycle riders and that the debate on adult helmet laws is irrelevant to teen driver safety.

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