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Road Warrior: N.J. teen driving decal program officially unveiled today
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
By JOHN CICHOWSKI
ROAD WARRIOR COLUMNIST
Ifyou're under 21 and you've just received your driving permit orprobationary license, you already know you still must jump through afew more bureaucratic hoops, such as the dreaded road test. And thenthere are the driving restrictions, too, including passengerlimitations and an 11 p.m. curfew under the Graduated Driver Licenselaw.
Ugh!
And today, at a news conference in Freehold withthe new attorney general, you'll formally hear about still another tinyhurdle: You must return to a state Motor Vehicle Commission office topick up two red, removable, 1-by-1 1/2-inch decals that can be slippedover the upper left corner of your front and back license plates. Thisrestriction applies to all novices, even those who have passed theirwritten exams or road tests.
Oh, and bring $4 with you, too. Likeyour driver's license and auto registration, asserting your privilegeto drive costs money — and so do these teen identity tags. The state ispaying a Chicago contractor $644,000 to make 500,000 of these decals,so you're on the hook to foot this bill, as well as ancillary costs.
Asyou might have heard, the Legislature last year mandated decals to makeit easier for police to identify novice drivers so they can betterenforce GDL restrictions.
You might not appreciate this as youtrudge off to an MVC office, but your $4 purchase is part of a historicAmerican experiment. That's because the decals, which must be displayedstarting May 1, mark the first attempt by any state to identify youngdrivers under GDL laws now prevalent in all states. Great Britain,Japan and Australia require similar decals. But not the United States.
Until now.
Some think this is un-American. A lawyer went to court in Morris
Countythis month to argue that the decals discriminate against teens like hisson. He also said it might make them targets for predators.
Thediscrimination argument would be stronger if driving was akin tovoting, which is a guaranteed constitutional right. But unfortunately,exercising your freedom at 60 mph is not mentioned in the constitution.It's a privilege with restrictions that cover all ages. The predatorargument would make more sense, too, if someone came up with a fewstrong examples in places like London, Tokyo or Sydney where decals arecommon.
But no one has. The closest target for attack is thefederal Driver's Privacy Protection Act which Congress adopted after astalker used motor vehicle records to track down and kill actressRebecca Schaeffer in California in 1989. But, as a deputy New Jerseyattorney general noted in this month's state Superior Court challenge,age is not considered personal information under federal law. Moreover,guessing somebody's age is hardly rocket science. All someone must do,the judge told the plaintiffs, is glance inside the car.
Ofcourse, that's not a good enough standard for police. They need alittle more precision before stopping a youthful-looking driver who,upon further examination, turns out to be on his way to middle age. Theblazing red decal provides this precision — unless, of course, it's Momor Dad who's doing the driving. That's why the decal is made of aVelcro-like substance that can be pulled on and off when an adultdrives the family car.
But if the motorist is on a learner'spermit or a GDL license, failing to attach the decal can mean a $100fine and even license suspension.
But all these arguments miss the bigger issue, which is safety.
Visitnjteendriving.com/gdl to learn more about the activity that kills moreAmerican teens each year (6,000) than any disease. One way to cut downon the carnage as much as 40 percent is the GDL law. Its restrictionsare designed to reduce risky behavior during a novice's first yearsbehind the wheel when the crash potential is greatest.
But a lawwith limited enforcement is not much of a law. With a simple splash ofcolor, Kyleigh's Law — named for a Morris County teen who was killed ina car driven by a novice — enhances enforcement. For thousands offamilies with teens like Kyleigh D'Alessio, the issue that keeps themup at night isn't the crazies who might prey on novice drivers. It'sthe novices whose inexperience and lack of judgment too often causesthem to drive a little crazy.
Road Warrior passes through here Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. E-mail cichowski@northjersey.com.
Ifyou're under 21 and you've just received your driving permit orprobationary license, you already know you still must jump through afew more bureaucratic hoops, such as the dreaded road test. And thenthere are the driving restrictions, too, including passengerlimitations and an 11 p.m. curfew under the Graduated Driver Licenselaw.
The red decals must be affixed to tags of cars operated by novices.
Ugh!
Andtoday, at a news conference in Freehold with the new attorney general,you'll formally hear about still another tiny hurdle: You must returnto a state Motor Vehicle Commission office to pick up two red,removable, 1-by-1 1/2-inch decals that can be slipped over the upperleft corner of your front and back license plates. This restrictionapplies to all novices, even those who have passed their written examsor road tests.
Oh,and bring $4 with you, too. Like your driver's license and autoregistration, asserting your privilege to drive costs money — and so dothese teen identity tags. The state is paying a Chicago contractor$644,000 to make 500,000 of these decals, so you're on the hook to footthis bill, as well as ancillary costs.
Asyou might have heard, the Legislature last year mandated decals to makeit easier for police to identify novice drivers so they can betterenforce GDL restrictions.
Youmight not appreciate this as you trudge off to an MVC office, but your$4 purchase is part of a historic American experiment. That's becausethe decals, which must be displayed starting May 1, mark the firstattempt by any state to identify young drivers under GDL laws nowprevalent in all states. Great Britain, Japan and Australia requiresimilar decals. But not the United States.
Until now.
Some think this is un-American. A lawyer went to court in Morris
Countythis month to argue that the decals discriminate against teens like hisson. He also said it might make them targets for predators.
Thediscrimination argument would be stronger if driving was akin tovoting, which is a guaranteed constitutional right. But unfortunately,exercising your freedom at 60 mph is not mentioned in the constitution.It's a privilege with restrictions that cover all ages. The predatorargument would make more sense, too, if someone came up with a fewstrong examples in places like London, Tokyo or Sydney where decals arecommon.
Butno one has. The closest target for attack is the federal Driver'sPrivacy Protection Act which Congress adopted after a stalker usedmotor vehicle records to track down and kill actress Rebecca Schaefferin California in 1989. But, as a deputy New Jersey attorney generalnoted in this month's state Superior Court challenge, age is notconsidered personal information under federal law. Moreover, guessingsomebody's age is hardly rocket science. All someone must do, the judgetold the plaintiffs, is glance inside the car.
Ofcourse, that's not a good enough standard for police. They need alittle more precision before stopping a youthful-looking driver who,upon further examination, turns out to be on his way to middle age. Theblazing red decal provides this precision — unless, of course, it's Momor Dad who's doing the driving. That's why the decal is made of aVelcro-like substance that can be pulled on and off when an adultdrives the family car.
Butif the motorist is on a learner's permit or a GDL license, failing toattach the decal can mean a $100 fine and even license suspension.
But all these arguments miss the bigger issue, which is safety.
Visitnjteendriving.com/gdl to learn more about the activity that kills moreAmerican teens each year (6,000) than any disease. One way to cut downon the carnage as much as 40 percent is the GDL law. Its restrictionsare designed to reduce risky behavior during a novice's first yearsbehind the wheel when the crash potential is greatest.
Buta law with limited enforcement is not much of a law. With a simplesplash of color, Kyleigh's Law — named for a Morris County teen who waskilled in a car driven by a novice — enhances enforcement. Forthousands of families with teens like Kyleigh D'Alessio, the issue thatkeeps them up at night isn't the crazies who might prey on novicedrivers. It's the novices whose inexperience and lack of judgment toooften causes them to drive a little crazy.
what do you think?
Gonna suck for new drivers...but I think it's great.. They should have GDL laws nationwide