DMV focuses on teen safety behind the wheel

Wethersfield, Conn. (WTNH) - The DMV announced Tuesday two new teen driving initiatives to encourage teens to drive safely and to ensure teens learn how to drive in a safe way.

For the first time, the DMV will include safety warnings for parents in its laws and training brochure for 16- and 17-year-old drivers.

The DMV also plans to strengthen requirements for people at driving schools who train other driving instructors.

"Both of these are strong initiatives aimed at the core issue of safety behind the wheel. We want parents to know issues to watch for and we want to ensure driving instructors are trained by experienced individuals," Commissioner Melody Currey said.

These changes come as Connecticut's Teen Safe Driving Week approaches.

The program is championed by !MPACT, officially known as Mourning Parents Act, Inc., a organization of families and friends of teens who died in car crashes.

The Commissioner also said that her office has been working for several months on changes to state regulations on commercial driving schools, including requirements for licensing those who teach driving instructors or so-called "master instructors" licensed by DMV.

"We need a more focused approach on specific qualifications for a master driving instructor and knowledge about instruction," she said, adding, "We also need to establish these criteria in state regulations because in the past it has been interpreted too widely and were never established by state law."

Driving instructors are trained under the supervision of their driving schools by a master instructor. This person has obtained a special license from DMV. The Commissioner, who came to DMV earlier this year, found that DMV did not have official standards in regulations for this master instructor.

The Commissioner has made a proposal in order create a criteria and establish a master instructor through state regulation.

"We take seriously issues that put students at jeopardy in their own training and leave parents unaware that the quality of driver's education for which they are paying has been compromised," the Commissioner said.

In 2011 DMV brought significant fines to two driving schools for failing to follow state law, including the use of unlicensed instructors.

Connecticut's Teen Safe Driving Week runs from December 4-10th.