Association between Young New Drivers’ Skills and Driver Training, Home Neighborhood Income Level, and Urbanicity: Evidence from the State of Ohio

The disproportionately high crash rates among young drivers in the U.S. stem from a complex interaction of individual maturity, driving skills, vehicle dynamics, social and financial backgrounds, and environmental factors. Research has found that some of these factors disproportionately affect economically disadvantaged groups in various rural/urban settings. Driver education and training have been employed in many states as mandatory for under-18-years-old drivers to secure junior licenses to equip them with safe driving skills. However, there is a gap in understanding how driver training, economic factors, and urbanicity correlate with developing specific driving skills among young drivers. This study leverages a unique dataset from Ohio, comprising Virtual Driving Assessment (VDA)-measured skills, driver licensing data, and home Census tract characteristics from 2017 to 2019 to analyze 22,490 young drivers aged under 25 years. We analyzed the data using visualization tools and inferential statistics to understand the differences in young drivers’ new skills by three separate variables: their completion of driver training and young driver licensure (DTYL) (licensed before 18 years old), urbanicity of residence, and home neighborhood income level. Results indicated that formal DTYL correlated with better adherence to traffic regulations, consistent braking, and lane position control. Young drivers from lower-income neighborhoods exhibited skill deficiencies in traffic rule compliance, throttle control, and lane management, potentially because of limited access to quality training and vehicle safety features. Conversely, rural young drivers excelled in consistent speed management and traffic rule adherence. These insights underscore the necessity to reevaluate driver education curricula and roadway design to align more closely with comprehensive safety outcomes, and to enhance young drivers’ safety awareness and skill proficiency.