It used to be that a teenager couldn’t wait to get a driver’s license. But the Department of Motor Vehicles says the number of teens on the road in California has declined. In 1981, it says 6.3% of licensed drivers in the state were 16 to 19 years old. But that dropped to about half, or 3.3%, by early 2016. California’s license-eligible teen population has also gone down. Grass Valley Police Captain Steve Johnson, who also has teen children, says he has no local numbers, but it does seem like a trend. He says one factor is that teens no longer have to drive everywhere to socialize…

click to listen to Captain Johnson

More restrictions on young teen drivers is also another likely reason. Since 1998, 15 to 17-year-olds must participate in the Graduated License Program. It tightened nighttime driving hours and banned young teen passengers, unless an adult is present, for those with provisional licenses. And Johnson says he supports recently-introduced legislation that would extend participation to age 21, instead of age 18…

click to listen to Captain Johnson

The DMV says about 40% of teens had licenses at the end of 2015, compared to 44% in 2000. That’s the lowest number since 1997, or a year before the Graduated License Program took effect. The rising cost of insurance may also be another reason for the decline.