One would think the answer is predictible where most people live.
BUT... what if you live in NYC? What if your parents (majority of people here) do not own a car and a each hour of driving is $60+ with a driving school. So, with a car for road test appointment and course, and 20+ hours of driving it can add up to $1,500-$2,000 to just get one. There are no "drivers ed" in high schools, of course. And you may need more than minimum hours to really drive(and park) on the streets of Manhattan, with double parked cards, darting jay-walkers in every section of the road, and massive trafic of short-tempered people looking for parking spots.
And, if the person does not drive for years after those 20 hours, that skill is not set. So that driver that got lisence and than does not need to drive until renting a car in some other US city years later, he will have a problem.
So how high should an average car-less New York family place this expense on their priority list?
At what level of income would $1,500+ to get their child an unusable lisence is reasonable?
Should a family pay for it even if they cannot fund retirement, for example?
I know this scenario is unimaginable in most other US cities, where you can't buy groceries or get a job without driving, but makes an interesting dilemma here.
Is driver's license a necessity or a luxury?
June 25th, 2014 at 06:26 pm
June 25th, 2014 at 07:30 pm 1403724624
As far as where it is on your priority list would be dependent on your need.
You could shop the schools, ask them how many driving hours you will get with them using their car and how many hours you will need to do on your own. Don't rent a car from a company but an individual. Maybe take a few weekends and drive out of town to rack up some hours. The license itself is under $100 depending on your class you would need a permit too. What about insurance?
June 26th, 2014 at 07:11 am 1403766717
In CA when i got my license you had to have 6 hours with an instructor before you could drive with a parent. It was about 50/hour. I lived in a rural area growing up so a car and license was a necessity if you wanted to be able to get around there was no such thing as public transportation. In Sacramento you could get away with not having a car and license, but it would be much more difficult unless you lived right downtown. One thing they talk about not being able to have a license, is the creation of those communities that are nutrient poor meaning there grocery stores in the areas where people can't afford to have a car are among the worst in terms of fresh fruits and vegetables. They are also called food deserts.
June 26th, 2014 at 12:32 pm 1403785946
June 26th, 2014 at 02:27 pm 1403792848
June 26th, 2014 at 05:40 pm 1403804425
June 26th, 2014 at 08:02 pm 1403812929