Under a newly proposed law aimed at further cracking down on traffic law infringements across the entirety of the EU, the minimum driving age could be dropped to 17. 

How would this work? Any 17-year-old who passes their driving test would be allowed to start driving but only in the presence of an adult who is also licensed to drive. 

The main purpose of the law is to further crack down on traffic violations and introduce a digital driving license that would be valid across all the bloc. The EU commission is also proposing making all new drivers subject to a 2 year probation period. 

This would be a zero-tolerance approach to drink driving as it would give law enforcement access to national driving license registers. This would help the commission identify offenders and ensure they pay fines. 

The EU will be the first region worldwide to have a driving licence that works across borders:

🔹 it will be accessible through a mobile phone, and
🔹 would be recognised throughout the EU.

This would make it easier to replace, renew or exchange a driving licence at EU level. pic.twitter.com/M9MURnlIjR

— European Commission (@EU_Commission) March 1, 2023

With the European Commission saying that more than 20,000 people were killed in 2022 in traffic incidents on the EU’s roads, Maltese shadow minister Adrian Delia called for the age to be raised to 21 locally. 

Under the new EU law, an individual would be disqualified from driving across the EU if they are disqualified in one country. This would be a world first as all member states would recognise it. 

What do you make of this?

#MaltaDaily