Massachusetts One of Safest States for Teen Drivers? Who Knew?

Parents of driving teens: take heart. While Massachusetts is notorious for its aggressive drivers, apparently it is one of the “safest” states in the country in terms of teen driving fatalities.

Who knew?

According to a recent study by Erie Insurance, Massachusetts’ rate of fatal teen car crashes falls 22 percent below the national rate of 11.3 deaths per 100,000 people.

In fact, the “safest” five states (those reporting the lowest deaths per 100,000 people) were all on the Eastern seaboard: New Jersey, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and Washington DC. The lowest rate was Washington D.C. with 1.7 teen driver deaths per 100,000 drivers.

The five deadliest states? North Dakota (27.2 deaths per 100,000), Kentucky, South Dakota, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Arkansas.

This is not at all to negate the fact that car accidents still remain the number one cause of death among teens. But apparently rural states claim more teen lives than do urban ones.

Having driven I 95 from Massachusetts to Maryland, the Garden State Parkway, and the New Jersey Turnpike many times and seen my share of crazy drivers, I was frankly surprised at this news. I still have a hard time believing it.

For more information, check out CBS News, Deadliest states for teen drivers. Also, if you want to get your teen thinking about driving safer, a great site for resources and links is here.

What are your strategies for keeping your kids safe behind the wheel? Are you surprised that Massachusetts is the fourth safest state for teen driving? Do you think this is a result of less overall teen driving, more restrictions on teens, better driver’s education, or something else?

I’d love to hear your opinions and thoughts.

I’ll still be nervous when I get behind the wheel with my 16-year-old son for the first time, though.

Hey it’s a mom’s job.