Is a driver's license really necessary?

It's not necessary at all! My SO is 35 and has never had a license and he gets around fine! I have a license, but I didn't own a car for 5 years (I bought one last year for work-related puroses). Before that, I just got around on my bike and public transportation. As long as you feel you can get around, it's your choice! Don't worry about what other people say. To each her own!

I think that if you live in a city, where there is plenty of public transportation, you don't need to learn how to drive. It's just nice to know that you can, I guess.

wow i thought i was the only one, im 21 and i still dont have my license yet. I've drove before with a permit but peopl on the roads scare me. Im gonna give it a shot when spring gets here and get one. Hopefully i can get over my fear of driving with all these nuts

not everyone needs to drive...however it is always better to have the ability to drive so that if the need did arise to you, you will have your license ready. Also it is alot easier to learn to drive as you are younger. As you leave it for another year and another year the time required to learn to drive (on average) becomes alot longer. but...if you have people that you can call on for a lift if you are in dire need, or if public transport is that good where you are (which i cant imagine) then by all means its not worth the trouble as it will save you alot of money to not learn and alot of time which you can put to better use im sure. khris

My Aunt is 65 she has never driven a car in her life. She is perfectly happy. I have never heard her say anything about wanting to drive, the only thing that is hard is every once in awhile she needs to be driven somewhere. For instance on Christmas we have to all get together and determine who is going to get Auntie. She is very difficult to drive with because she is so scared and crazy she panics at every little bump, noise and will nearly go through the roof if you pass someone. So I would say this to you... You don't have to have a drivers license but do yourself a favor a learn how to drive. Think about this what if you and your husband where driving someone and something happened and it was up to you to get you and the kids to some place safe. Don't let a fear overrun your life, face it head on you aren't afraid to drive you are afraid of the unknown. Once you have knowledge of a situation you have the power.

You don't have to have a driver's license. If you are not comfortable driving, and there is public transport available, then you're fine. Think of how much money you save by not having to buy a car, pay for gas, deal with maintenance and parking. Life is simpler without a car!! And by using public transport, you are doing your part to cut down on greenhouse gases and saving our environment.

My wife's aunt is in the same boat but she is in her late 40's. She had a bad experience when she was younger and has been afraid of driving or even learning how to drive ever since. She has gotten by because she has a carpool that gets her to and from work in which she contributes not by driving, but by helping out with gas. Her husband also drives and outside of work they are always together so there is also no need to drive. The only thing I would say about her situation that may warrant getting a drivers licence is in the case of an emergency where she would be the only person who would be called on to drive. It's not so much as having the licence as knowing how to drive.

i don't think you need to worry. if you feel that you can get through life without one, then all the power to you. i mean, you don't need to depend on a car, there are plenty of other modes of transporation. i do have my license, but i haven't driven in a while. me its serves as a form of ID, right now i don't have a car, well i do, but my husband uses it for work and basiclly its such a mess that i can't physically drive it right now. i did go through a point where we had no car. it was difficult. we live in some what of an urban area and my husband needed to get to work, the point where he would have to take the buss to work was getting stupid and taking forever that he didn't even spend time with us. so getting a car was a smart move for us. also, we have 2 small children and taking the buss is out of the question

I don't think that you need to know how to drive or have a license but you should know the basics of a car in case you are ever in a situation where you may need to move a vehicle or someone gets ill. Look at places like New York; they have a lot of ways to get around and there are tons of people that don't drive or have a car because of the transit system. I do drive but if I can get away with walking somewhere, I do. I hate having to waste gas or looking for parking spaces and dealing with some of the strange people on the roads. But I will say this again, I really think it's a good idea to have someone take you to a large parking lot and let you get behind the wheel, just so you know the basics of operating a car in case you ever need to.

Well I'm 50 years old and I don't drive. I live in a small town where I can walk to the shops, there are buses and trains to get me wherever I want to go so I've never bothered driving. But recently I decided it was time to learn to drive as sometimes I'm needed in an emergency and I can't get there without relying on others. I have yet to start those lessons though!!

I was like you I didnt get my license or have any desire to until after I had my daughter and realized that I couldnt take her anywhere without some taking me there. I didnt get my license until I was 23 and boy do I ever regret it. That was one of my biggest regrets ever I felt like I missed out on something. I feel like I lost part of freedom for all those years freedom that I didnt know was out there or even existed. Wouldn't you love to be sitting there and just decide to go somewhere.... anywhere and then just get up and go? Do it now before its too late and you regret never having done this.

I think it depends on where you live. I live in San diego, Ca and driving is a real necessity here. Without driver's license I cannot go anywhere. When I get here 5 years ago, I used to walked for about 1 mile just to get to the bus stop. I have no choice because that is the only way to get to work. My parent's doesn't drive either. My relatives where we used to live also work so they won't be able to carpool me to work. I did have a tough time when I wasn't driving yet. When I got my license, I can go anywhere, anytime I wanted. Driving is very important here especially we don't have enough public transportation. You should get a license soon. It's more fun driving and I think you'll enjoy more places too. Goodluck!

I would be lost without my car. I live in a very rural area so I have to have transportation...no public transportation here. There are times when I think it would be nice to just be able to take a bus, train and not have to pay a car payment, insurance, and maintainence. But I really have no choice.

Well.im 18 and i still dont have my license. Im not in a big hurry to get it even though everyone is telling me i should. But why?. They dangerous,pollute and cost alot of money. I think using public transportation is great,sometimes i even walk to my destination. Oh and carpooling is good too. I wouldnt be lost without my car,especially with the way some people drive. Cars arent necessary to live especially when they can kill you. I admit im scared to drive ive done it a few times and it wasnt fun at all. IF people tell you,you need to get a license just ignore them thats what i do. If you dont want a license for certain reasons then you shouldnt get one.

I was always afraid to drive too. I didn`t learn to drive until I was 30. I went to driving school. now its no problem. it seems scary at first but once you are used to it everything is fine. good luck on whatever you decide to do.

If you have no desire to drive and you aren't constantly asking people to take you places then there really s no reason for you to get a driver's license. YOu are very capable when it comes to finding ways to get places using public transportation, I assume. YOu didn't tell us how you respond to people when they give you the line about not waitng too long, but you might want to tell them how much money you save by not having to maintain a vehicle. That might make them think!

I am thirty two and still do not have my license although many times I have said I am going to go get them. Although where I live I can easily walk to everywhere I need to go, there are definitely times when it would have just been easier if I had my drivers license. And I like you am afraid to drive. There are so many careless people out there, if I were involved in an accident I would feel so bad, even if it wasn't my fault.

I was talking with my little sister earlier about this topic and she shared her experiences living in Europe (she did a semester abroad in Austria and travelled around a lot). Most of the people that she met there didn't own cars and a large number of them didn't know how to drive. So you are not alone! Just tell people you're trying to do things the European way. *wink*

I think in most parts of the US people need dto drive. You're lucky you have access to good public transportation. If I didn't have a car, I couldn't get to work, the grocery store, the doctor's, etc. Maybe you could take a class, just so you'd know how to drive in an emergency. Driving through rush hour traffic every morning and afternoon is the worst part of my day. I don't blame you for not being enthused about driving!

I'm 22 and have yet to even get a learner's permit. I live in a city with one of the best public transportation systems in the country and it's been fine for me since high school. When I absolutely need a ride somewhere, I have friends I can call who will help me out. My boyfriend also drives, so when we go out to dinner or to see a movie we just hop in his car.