15-year-olds out to beat raised driving age

An influx of Rotorua 15-year-olds getting their learner licence is expected before law changes in August which will increase the driving age to 16.
The Government passed legislation on Thursday which also included other major changes for drivers.
From August, when the minimum driving age increases to 16, there will be a zero alcohol limit for drivers under 20 and it will be harder for people to get a restricted licence. The time until a learner driver can graduate to a restricted licence has been left at six months.
The new laws will bring New Zealand's driving age in line with Canada and Australia where it is also 16. The driving age in the United Kingdom is 17.
Rotorua AA manager Ange Inia said many people knew the law change was coming and she expected to be busy next week as teenagers raced in to get their learner licence before August.
Fifteen-year-old John Paul College student Alex MacMillan will be among those getting his licence before the law changes.
"We should be able to drive [at 15]. It's only a minimum amount of people letting everyone down," he said.
Fellow student Valen van Zyl, 17, said it was a good move.
"When you're 15 you think you know everything, but when you get older you start to notice the hazards."
Federated Farmers chairman Lachlan McKenzie said the new laws were disappointing and it would have a huge effect on young farmers. He said people developed skills from a young age and that included driving.
"Delaying the age at which they can drive is detrimental to the final skills they develop."
Karen Gardiner, mother of 18-year-old Kristi-Rae Ruri-Gardiner who died in a car crash last year, said teenagers of all ages had different levels of maturity and raising the driving age wouldn't necessarily mean they would be more responsible at 16 than 15.
She said experience was far more important than a person's age.
"Experience is huge. I believe every teenager should have to do a defensive driving course."
Secondary Schools Association president and John Paul College principal Patrick Walsh said 16 should definitely be the minimum driving age. He said driving at 15 was a huge responsibility. "Driving is effectively an adult experience, there has to be some benchmarks set."
Rotorua Girls' High School principal Annette Joyce said an extra 12 months would mean teenagers would be much more mature when they sat their licence.