It’s one of those problems without an easy solution: What should we do about the increasingly dangerous number of unlicensed drivers on our roads?

According to a study by the AAA Foundation, one in every five fatal car crashes involves a driver without a valid driver’s license. On average, that means 8,400 people die each year in accidents involving an unlicensed driver.

Worse yet, the study says, 28 percent of the lawbreaking drivers had received three or more license suspensions or revocations in the three years prior to the collision.

The message is clear: The system isn’t stopping unlicensed and dangerous drivers from getting behind the wheel in America. And, once behind the wheel, these drivers pose a real and dangerous threat to the rest of us.

Moreover, the statistics indicate an alarming trend: The unlicensed drivers in these studies tend to be repeat offenders who are more likely to be driving while under the influence of alcohol or drugs and more than five times as likely to be hit-and-run drivers.

And, the plethora of unlicensed drivers is one of those not-so-glamorous problems that often fails to grab headlines. It’s not an epidemic; it’s not a nasty political battle; it’s not a scandalous story.

But it’s a real danger, and something we believe can be addressed effectively and efficiently with little fanfare.

Law enforcement agencies need to develop stricter punishments for drivers who lose their licenses – from longer suspensions to stiffer fines to more jail time for violators. And officers and the courts need to enforce those punishments.

This is not a minor infraction of motor vehicle law. The statistics tell the real story: Unlicensed drivers are dangerous, and they are killing people on our highways and roads at alarming rates.