The Iowa Department of Transportation has made two significant changes to the state’s graduated driver’s license system that will take effect starting tomorrow.

The first change is that young drivers will now be required to carry an instruction permit for 12 months before they can apply for an intermediate license.  Drivers are currently only required to carry a permit for six months.

The second change is in relation to 16 year-olds driving with passengers once they have received their intermediate license.  For teens who are issued intermediate licenses after January 1, their license will limit them to one minor passenger during the first six months of their license.

West Central Valley Drivers’ Education instructor Jeff Pease is fully supportive of both changes, and he feels that the limiting of a teen’s distractions is particularly important.

“The more kids in that car, the greater the chance for something bad happening.  We know now that distractions include cell phone use and all that kind of stuff, and the more that’s in (the car), the more distracting it can be for that driver and the less they’re paying attention to what they need to be paying attention to… that causes crashes and injury and fatality.  Statistics show us that’s what’s going on, so we have to try to implement something that’s going to help that situation get better.”

According to the Iowa DOT, the two impending changes are simply “tools that can be used to keep kids safe behind the wheel and work to save their lives.”

Ultimately, Pease says the changes aren’t a perfect solution to solving the issue of teen motor vehicle accidents, but he does believe they are a nice start.