Wisconsin GDL Laws

Wisconsin Graduated Drivers Licence (GDL) Laws

GDL/teen risk

Year in and year out, teen drivers are over-represented in traffic crashes. Only 6% of all Wisconsin-licensed drivers are ages 16-19, but drivers in this age group account for 16% of all drivers involved in crashes.

Wisconsin’s Graduated Driver License (GDL) law went into effect in 2000 to help give new, young drivers a healthier, safer start to their driving career. The GDL law was crafted to:

  • Give beginning teen drivers more practice time behind the wheel before getting a probationary license
  • Restrict teen drivers from being on the road during late night hours when the risk of injury is high
  • Limit the number of passengers who are at risk while riding with teen drivers
  • Allow teen drivers a longer and safer driving experience before earning an unrestricted license

Based on the first three full years of the GDL restrictions (2001-03), the number of 16-year old drivers involved in crashes has decreased. Compared to the three years prior to GDL (1997-99), during 2001-03, 16-year old drivers were:

  • 15% less likely to be in a traffic crash of any type (6,709 per year)
  • 18% less likely to be in a fatal crash (23 per year)
  • 20% less likely to be in a non-fatal injury crash (2,354 per year)
  • 12% less likely to be in a property damage-only crash (4,332 per year)

With exceptions for school and work, Wisconsin’s GDL law restricts teens with probationary licenses from driving between Midnight and 5:00 AM. Since GDL was enacted, during these overnight hours, 16-year old drivers were:

  • 36% less likely to be in a crash of any type (591 per year)
  • 37% less likely to be in a non-fatal injury crash (219 per year)
  • 35% less likely to be in a property damage-only crash (369 per year)

There was no change in the number of 16-year olds involved in fatal crashes between midnight and 5 a.m. (three per year before GDL, and three per year since).

More analysis is being conducted to determine other benefits that the new GDL law may have had for teen drivers.