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Reg. of Motor Vehicles
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New Teen Driving Laws Stiffer Fines and Penalties Await Teen Scofflaws
By Verne Stone
March 20,2007 -- Basic
teen driving rules were originally put into place to ease new teen
drivers into their driving careers slowly, and with care for the safety
of everyone on the road. For example, back in the day, new teen drivers
were not allowed to drive between the hours of 1AM and 4AM. This was to
avoid crashes caused by inexperienced night drivers who may encounter
something seemingly harmless as a little night dew on the road or some
cute, furry nocturnal creatures, or more sinister threats such as
shadowy pedestrians, woozy bar patrons who may have closed the place
down, or frankly, a dark road filled with other inexperienced teens.
Many
times, the fines and punishments for breaking these restrictions didn't
seem to outweigh the teen driver's perceived benefit of breaking the
restrictions. Many new drivers broke the laws and as expected, there
were many needless teen crashes, injuries and deaths during the
restricted hours. For this reason, New J.O.L. (Junior Operator License)
laws were enacted, but alas, those new rules and the penalties for
breaking them were scoffed at by many teens just as before. The
penalties still just didn't outweigh the lure of racing shiny machines
on dark roads after midnight to prove one's self or impress one's
friends. Teens still filled their cars with their under-aged pals. They
still drove in the small hours of the morning. They still drag raced.
Many times these teens were caught driving drunk, performing dangerous
stunts on the public highways and streets. All too often, teens were
being found wrapped around a tree or the side of a bridge pillar.
For
this reason, effective March 31, 2007, new rules and penalties
regarding teen drivers will go into effect. Many more go into effect
six months later on September 1st,2007. These new rules are more harsh.
The suspension times are far longer. The fines are far greater.
Additionally, many infractions are punished by sending the scofflaw to
a mandatory State Courts Against Road Rage (SCARR) course and attitudinal retraining.
All
new J.O.L. drivers and their parents are urged to review the current
and the upcoming new laws regarding J.O.L. licensing. You can review the official Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles J.O.L. information pages by clicking here.
Here are some highlights:
Driving with other passengers in first six months:
- 1st offense: 60 day license suspension
- 2nd offense: 180 day suspension and required attitudinal retraining
- 3rd offense: 1 year suspension and required attitudinal retraining
Junior Operator/Permit Holder Driving between 12:30am and 5 am:
- 1st offense: 60 day license suspension (was 30 days)
- 2nd offense: 180 day suspension and required attitudinal retraining
- 3rd offense: 1 year suspension and required attitudinal retraining
- Fine for unlicensed operation: $100-$1000
Junior Operator drag racing:
- 1st offense: $250 plus 1 year license suspension plus $500 to reinstate license
- 2nd
offense: $500 plus 3 years license suspension plus $1000 to reinstate
plus mandatory completion of State Courts Against Road Rage (SCARR)
course and attitudinal retraining, and re-application for road test
Junior Operator speeding
- 1st
offense: 1st offense: 90-day license suspension, minimum $50 fine, plus
additional $10 for each mph in excess of 10 mph over posted speed
limit, plus a $50 surcharge, completion of State Courts Against Road
Rage (SCARR) course and attitudinal retraining
- 2nd
offense: 1-year license suspension, minimum $50 fine, plus additional
$10 for each mph in excess of 10 mph over posted speed limit, plus a
$50 surcharge, completion of State Courts Against Road Rage (SCARR)
course and attitudinal retraining, $500 reinstatement fee, and
re-application for road test
Effective September 1, 2007:
New requirements to get a license:
- 40 hours driving with parent or guardian (or 30 if you take an advance drivers ed class)
- Parent or guardian must participate in 2 hours of drivers ed
- Drivers ed: 6 hours observing and 12 hours behind the wheel
Always be sure to check the official Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles web site for the most recent updates to the rules and laws of driving.
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