I don't mean to sit around and toot the AutoSpies horn here but T00T T00T.
For quite a while around these parts, 001 and I have been sitting back and noticing a cultural shift, predominantly among young drivers. For the sake of brevity:
Teen drivers aren't as compelled to get licenses anymore. Between a heightened world of connectivity, rising costs of insurance, rising costs of fuel and the growing importance of the connected mobile device -- hooked up to social media channels --, the auto is losing ground.
Although here is something I didn't see: older drivers are holding onto their licenses longer. Yikes, now that's a problem that's worth addressing.
Considering how many states are going through tough fiscal times, why not have cyclical road tests when licenses expire. Then, state DMVs can build that into a higher price for renewal. Not only will the roads be safer but maybe some budgets can get -- somewhat -- adjusted.
Younger Americans aren't speeding to get a driver's license. A study by the University of Michigan released Thursday found a lower proportion of young people have a driver's license today compared to their counterparts in the early 1980s.
About 87 percent of 19-year-olds in 1983 had their licenses, but in 2008, that percentage fell to about 75 percent.
At the same time, there's been a dramatic increase in the number of older Americans holding onto their driver's licenses...
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