LONGER time on L-plates, restrictions on carrying passengers and night-time curfews have been flagged in a major overhaul of regulations on young drivers.

YOUNG motorists have been targeted in a dramatic overhaul of the state's licensing system, which includes increasing the driving age and introducing passenger limits and curfews.

The State Government says the controversial scheme will slash the overall number of serious and fatal accidents each year by about 5 per cent.

Road Safety Minister Tom Kenyon yesterday unveiled plans to extend the learner's plate period from one year to two, making 18 the youngest age a person can drive unaccompanied. Other planned changes include:

PASSENGER restrictions for drivers in the first year of their provisional licence to stop them carrying more than one person aged under 21.

CURFEWS on driving between midnight and 5am for motorists in the first year of their provisional licence.

LIFTING the age at which a person achieves full driving rights to 21.

EXEMPTIONS from restrictions for legitimate employment reasons or if passengers are immediate family members.

People breaking the restrictions will face fines and demerit points.

The regime will be one of the toughest in the nation and combines a series of measures that are enforced sporadically in the eastern states.

Peer passenger restrictions are in place in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.

Western Australia has night-driving curfews for the first six months of provisional licences and they are used in Queensland as a penalty. No jurisdiction enforces both as a blanket measure.

The RAA has questioned the evidence behind the move and called for increased training of drivers on a learner's permit regardless of age.

Mr Kenyon has released the measures for consultation until December 9 and said they could come into force as soon as 2013.

Asked if the Government was prepared to reconsider the changes or was likely to approve them as planned, Mr Kenyon said: "It's something I definitely want to do.

These are big changes, especially the driving age. It's going to inconvenience families, it's going to inconvenience people. It's a matter of balancing the inconvenience caused by these changes with the potential gains in lives and injuries.

"It will be very, very effective in saving lives."

The Government forecasts the measures will reduce the number of fatal and serious injury crashes by up to 80 per year. SA Police figures show an average 903 serious accidents over the past three years.

Youth Affairs Council of South Australia executive director Anne Bainbridge conceded young people were overrepresented in road statistics but warned the Government against imposing unfair restrictions on good drivers. Young people in rural areas faced the harshest penalty, she said.

RAA group managing director Ian Stone said the Government had failed to produce convincing evidence that a recent increase in the learner's permit period from six to 12 months had delivered a major road safety benefit.

The Government should instead increase the current 75 hours of minimum supervised driving time to 120 hours, he said.

"For any of these proposed changes to be made, the Government needs to provide sufficient evidence that these measures will be life saving and that they will have the resources to enforce it," Mr Stone said.

"RAA does not support an increase in the minimum licence age unless there is strong evidence to support this change."

Increasing supervised driving time would ensure "all new drivers, regardless of their age, can better their driving skills and knowledge before driving alone", he said.

"New drivers need experience and the more they get, the better drivers they will be."

Motor Trade Association executive director John Chapman said it was critical that appropriate measures be included to allow young workers, especially apprentices, to drive.

The Government should also introduce vehicle inspections at change of ownership to reduce the number of unroadworthy vehicles on the streets, he said.

"The issue with road safety and young people is absolutely paramount," he said.

"There's been evidence of success in the eastern states with the graduated licensing scheme."

Opposition justice spokesman Stephen Wade branded the move "cynical" and the work of a "nanny state" Government that had neglected regional people.

The Government should focus on dealing with a $200 million backlog in road maintenance to minimise the impact of crashes, he said.

"The city-centric Labor Government is yet again trying to distract from its long-term failures in the important road safety portfolio.

"The Liberal Opposition is very concerned about country South Australia, as country South Australians rely heavily on their vehicles.

"Young people around South Australia rely on their vehicles not just for work, but for recreation and social engagements."

Mr Wade said denying people their full licences until the age of 21 was "completely out of touch with the realities of modern living".

Over the past decade, more than 4000 young people aged between 16 and 24 have been killed or seriously injured on South Australian roads.

The Government's driver safety strategy targets a reduction in the overall annual state road toll to below 80 by 2020.

Originally published as Tough rules for young drivers