Can the effectiveness of driver education be sustained? Effects of driving breaks on novice drivers’ traffic violations

Abstract

Prior studies have shown that driver education can reduce traffic violations. However, few studies have examined how driving break between driver education and owning a car influences novice drivers’ traffic violations. The main objective of this study is to examine the association between driving break and traffic violations. Data from 356,786 drivers with a total of 978,855 violations during their first year of driving were extracted from the Wuhan Traffic Management Bureau. Specifically, we focused on three outcome measures: time length of first traffic violation, severity of first traffic violation, and number of traffic violations in the first year of driving. The results indicated that driving break accelerated the occurrence of the first traffic violation but reduced its severity. The results also showed that driving break was significantly related to an increase in traffic violations during the first year of driving. The detrimental effects of driving break on the time length of first traffic violation and the number of traffic violations in the first year of driving were attenuated in older age groups. The inhibitory effect of driving break on serious violations was stronger in older age groups. The findings support that the effectiveness of driver education will fade over time if one does not consolidate the learned knowledge and skills through practice.