It's well-accepted that teenage drivers are, by definition, short on driving experience and also more vulnerable to distractions while driving. In that light, it was encouraging to see the state House pass a bill that limits the number of nonfamily passengers a junior driver can carry, while also adding new restrictions and requirements for young drivers.

House Bill 67 prohibits more than one non-family passenger under 18 years old to be in a car driven by someone with a junior license. The bill also would increase the number of hours of behind-the-wheel experience required in the junior license period, adding hours and specifying 10 hours of nighttime driving and 5 hours of bad-weather driving.

While it's unclear how these provisions will be enforced, it's certainly a good idea to give young drivers experience behind the wheel in a variety of driving conditions.

Because driver distraction caused by multiple young passengers has been ruled a factor in a significant number of fatal crashes, the passenger limitation is a common-sense measure, already adopted by a number of other states.

And recognizing that drivers can be distracted by not only passengers but also by electronic gadgets is another common-sense provision. Specifically, the bill also would prohibit young drivers from using a cell phone or text messaging.

Another reasonable part of the bill would make wearing a seat belt a primary offense, meaning police would be permitted to pull over a driver if the officer observes the driver or a passenger not wearing a seat belt. Under current law, police can charge a driver with not wearing a seat belt, but only after stopping the driver for another violation. A seat-belt violation is not now a primary offense and cannot be the reason for a police stop.

The toughening of conditions for young drivers with junior licenses makes sense. Similar provisions already are in place in 36 other states, including most of Pennsylvania's neighbors.

Such changes enjoy broad support among the public, with the exception of those in the 16- to 18-year-old range.

A 1999 toughening of license requirements for young drivers in the state has been credited with reducing teen traffic accidents and fatalities. It is expected that this further toughening will save additional lives and lead to still-fewer accidents involving young, inexperienced drivers.

Various groups, including AAA chapters, safety groups and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, support HB-67. A report by the AAA Federation of Pennsylvania showed that a teenage driver's chances of dying in a crash increase by 39 percent with a single passenger, but shoot up 86 percent with two passengers, and increase by 182 percent with three or more passengers.

These statistics are borne out by simple observation of many teens cruising in their cars. There is a clear tendency for many teenage drivers to show off when accompanied by multiple young passengers — and with behavior they would not engage in if driving alone or with an older adult.

The state Senate should support this bill so that it can be signed into law and become another tool to help protect teen drivers, and the other people on the road with them.

Teenage drivers might not like the additional limitations and requirements, but they'll no doubt come to appreciate them years later, when they become parents of driving-age children themselves.