Mandatory driver's education to expand under new Washington law

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4 days ago

The Brief
House Bill 1878 expands mandatory driver's education to drivers up to 21 years old by 2030, and introduces safe driving courses for young drivers with traffic tickets.
The law aims to reduce high crash rates among young drivers by offering vouchers for driving school costs, online courses, and accommodating training hardships.
Concerns about online instruction quality persist, with suggestions for partnerships with commercial driving schools to address public school program challenges.
OLYMPIA, Wash. - Young drivers will eventually have to get more traffic safety education under legislation signed into law this month.
House Bill 1878, which got Gov. Ferguson's approval on May 17, annually expands mandatory driver's education to drivers up to 21-years-old by 2030, starting with 18-year-olds in 2027. Right now, only 16 and 17-year-olds have to take driver's ed before getting their first license.
The bill also requires safe driving courses for young drivers who accumulate traffic tickets. And starting in 2031, drivers under 21 will be required to take a traffic safety "refresher course" to retain their license.
What they're saying
Prime sponsor, Rep. Brandy Donaghy, D-Mill Creek, said the sweeping legislation helps move the needle when it comes to safe streets.
"Our goal here is to make sure that our roadways are as safe as possible for everybody on them," she said in an interview Wednesday. "If you know what the rules are, and you know the ways you can deal with icy roads or low-visibility conditions, you're automatically going to be in a better position when you face those on the roads."
Mark McKechnie, External Relations Director for the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, said young drivers are disproportionately involved in serious or deadly crashes. A state report found that while people aged 15 to 24 make up just 10.6% of drivers, they were involved in crashes that resulted in 26% of all fatalities and 29% of all serious injuries between 2020 and 2022.
"For 18 to 25-year-olds who had not taken driver education, they had more than a 60% higher rate of crash involvement," McKechnie said.
While driver's ed makes someone less likely to get in a crash, he said, young people do not go because it is either too expensive, or it is not available in their area.
To make driving school more accessible, the law also creates a voucher program to help with costs, allows online driving courses, and lets students do most of their behind-the-wheel training in one day if they have hardships like living far away.
"Rather than force them to travel one to two hours to be able to get to somebody for 30- to 60-minute sessions, we did want to provide an opportunity for them to at least have a chance to get that time in without it being more of a burden," Donaghy said.
The other side
"I'm a history major, I teach [English language arts], I teach a whole myriad of different subjects. But in a way, there's nothing that I've taught that is more important than driver education," said Alex Hansen, President of the Washington Traffic Safety Education Association.
The public school teacher, driving instructor and teacher of other instructors said he applauds lawmakers for trying to tackle a big challenge – but believes the bill does not get up to speed.
He expressed concern about the quality of instruction through online means and allowing students to accomplish a majority of behind-the-wheel instruction in one day, calling the changes "educationally unsound."
Hansen said he ultimately believes supporting traffic safety education in public schools is the best way to promote safety.
"Public schools are designed to address and teach all kids," he said. "Kids who have access to a driver education program in the local high school where they already attend, they're gonna take it. But only 20 schools in the state of Washington currently still offer it – when almost every school back in the 90s when I taught it offered it, and almost everybody took it."
Donaghy said there are many factors that complicate bringing driver's ed back to schools, like staffing shortages, liability and cost. Though she said partnerships with commercial driving schools could go a long way.
What's next
In a statement, a Department of Licensing spokesperson said the agency will be working closely with the education association, traffic safety commission and other partners to successfully implement the bill, which is "expected to significantly enhance road safety and modernize driver education in Washington, impacting all road users."
While the legislation expands mandatory driver training to 21, Donaghy said the goal is to ultimately expand it to age 25.
Albert James is a television reporter covering state government as part of the Murrow News Fellowship program – a collaborative effort between news outlets statewide and Washington State University.
The Source
Information in this story comes from original reporting by Murrow News Fellow Albert James.
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