As L and P platers are still developing their driving abilities, they have certain restrictions compared to other drivers – and on 1 July 2007, new and tougher laws for L and P plate drivers were introduced.

It’s important that you know about the changes so you don’t get fined or, even worse, lose your licence.

These are big changes and they’ve been made for one major reason – to try and stop young people getting killed or injured on the road.

Here is a summary of the major changes:

• P1 drivers and provisional motorcycle riders will have their licence suspended for at least three months for ANY speeding offence.
  PENALTY: The minimum is four demerit points, a fine and three month licence suspension.

• ALL mobile phone use is banned for Learner, P1 drivers and provisional motorcycle riders – this applies to all use, including hands-free sets and phones set to speaker.
  PENALTY: Three demerit points and a fine (four demerit points if the offence occurs in a school zone).

• P1 drivers under the age of 25 can only carry one passenger under the age of 21 between 11pm and 5am (there are some exemptions).
  PENALTY: Three demerit points and a fine.

• L and P plates have to be attached to the OUTSIDE of the car – you can’t stick the plates on the inside of your window any more.
  PENALTY: Two demerit points and a fine.

• New Learner drivers need to complete 120 hours of supervised driving and hold their licence for a minimum of 12 months

You may think you’re being punished for the behaviour of a handful of hoons, but take a look at the stats.

Only 13 per cent of all licensed drivers are young – but they are involved in more than a quarter of all fatal crashes.

Here’s some more info about why the changes have been introduced:

Speeding

Speeding is the number one cause of fatal crashes on our roads.

It’s been shown time and time again that simply slowing down and driving safely for the conditions is the best way to reduce road crashes.

Research has shown that even a 5 km/h increase in speed can double the risk of an injury crash. The risk doubles again for each additional 5 km/h travelled.

Drivers travelling at high speed also have less time to react to dangerous situations and in the event of a crash are likely to receive more serious injuries.

One in five of all speeding drivers involved in fatal crashes between 2001 and 2005 were aged between 17 and 20 years of age – 16 per cent were aged 21 to 25 years old.

So slow down.

Mobile phones

Using a mobile while driving can increase the risk of a collision by four times, according to several studies. Sending a text message is even worse.

Surprisingly, a hands-free device is no better. But why is this so?

Research shows that the distraction of using a mobile phone has two aspects – firstly there’s the physical distraction of fiddling with the handset and taking your eyes off the road to check the screen. Secondly, there’s the “cognitive” distraction – this basically means taking your mind off the driving task to concentrate on your phone or the conversation.

This issue has been the subject of heaps of scientific studies. The Institute of Road Safety in the Netherlands has summarised the research. It found: “The vast majority of studies report that hands free phoning does not have a significant safety advantage over handheld phoning.”

And it’s easy to avoid getting pinged for using your mobile phone. Just turn it off and retrieve your messages when you’ve finished driving.

Passengers late at night

The restriction on carrying more than one young passenger late at night is designed to remove distractions for P1 drivers.

Horrific crashes involving cars full of young people are all too common. P1 drivers are involved in fatal crashes late at night and early in the morning at a rate which is totally out of proportion to their numbers on the road.

In about a third of these early morning fatal crashes, the P1 driver had more than one passenger in the car.

The RTA can grant an exemption from peer passenger restrictions if exceptional circumstances are demonstrated.

Check the RTA website for more details and to download a copy of the exemption form.

L and P plates
Police have reported that too many young drivers have been caught hiding their L and P plates in obscure positions on dashboards.

Other drivers need to be able to identify inexperienced drivers on the road.

L and P plates must now be displayed on the exterior of cars.

Getting experience

Your risk of crashing falls dramatically as you gain experience on the road.

For this reason, the rules have been changed to make sure that Learners get a lot more driving experience before they move on to their Ps and solo driving.

On 1 July 2007, the mandatory period of supervised driving for all new Learners increased from 50 to 120 hours.

In a first for Australia, the 120 hours includes a requirement of 20 hours of night driving with your supervising driver.

Learner drivers under the age of 25 now need to hold their L plates for at least one year before applying for a P1 licence – this is a 100 per cent increase on the previous six month minimum.

The validity of the Learner licence has been extended from three to five years.

For more info, visit the RTA website at www.rta.nsw.gov.au.