The age for getting an unrestricted Kansas driver's license could soon be going up from age 16 to 17. The Kansas Senate today voted yes, by a 35-5 margin, to make House Bill #2143 a law. The House earlier voted in favor of changing the unrestricted driving age.I have never liked the legal driving age of 16 here in Kansas.. I had brown hair (sort of) before my teens began driving. Growing up in New York I had to wait until I was the civilized age of 18 to drive a car.. so I have never really understood the driving laws in Kansas. a bit barbaric if you ask me :)
The bill, that would require teens to have a learner's permit a year before becoming unrestricted, could soon be on the Governor's desk to be signed into law. Local law officers are praising the idea, calling it a move that could save lives. Also, some local motorists seem to favor the idea
What do you think the legal driving age should be? What is it where you live?
Here in OH it's always been 16. In recent years, 15.5 year olds can get a learner's permit and drive with a licensed driver. They are moving back to 16 in a year or two, thankfully.
ReplyDeleteIn recent years they've restricted drivers under 18 from having other teens in the car an from driving after dark except in specific circumstances (to and from work, I think, for example). I'm not sure of the specifics, but in a couple of years I'll have to be. :-D
I think 16 with restrictions is fine, but I would have hated them when I was 16!
I believe Calif is 16 with restrictions..
ReplyDeleteI learned to drive an old pickup with floor shift on the canal banks of Central CA when I was 15. Looking back it's a wonder I didn't drive it into the canal. My dad taught me. Got my license at 16 and drove a 51 Studebaker.
I think the age should be 18... it would save a lot of teenage wrecks and accidents. My daughter's horendous accident in 1989 the drive was 16 with a permit... drove too fast, no seat belt, and the the result, a life long disability for my daughter.
Didn't mean to ramble...but that stuck some sad memories.
LOL:Wanda
Bob, being a native Kansan, I know why the age is so young. Beyond Johnson, Wyandotte, sedgewick, and a couple of other counties, Kansas is very rural. The young driving age is to allow for the youngins to help around the farm. This is becoming an increasingly rare thing even or rural areas, and I look forward to the 18 year driving age that hopefully everyone will adopt. Since you do live in JOCO, you will still have to live with all the 16 year old Missouri drivers.
ReplyDeleteNot to worry Scott.. the proposed law would still allow for farm kids to get a farm learning permit at age 14.. they just keep those kids off the main roads :)
ReplyDeleteI was 16 when I got my drivers license, here in TX. It is still 16. There are those who are from a single parent home who have gotten their license younger because of the family situations. There are restrictions on it at 16, if I am correct in this.
ReplyDeleteI think that it should be 18 as well for the same reasons why others stated as well.
As a city boy, i was 20 when i first got my license.
ReplyDeleteBut where I live now, you need a car to get to work. My son, now 16, just got his permit.
My heart goes out to Wanda, but I think 16 is good age. In CT, you can get your license at 16, but you can not have anyone else in car with you for first six months. Drivers need to take an approved course and have certain number of hours under their belt. Parents have to take a course too about their responsibilies.
I remember when my grandmother was 16, she left her family, boarded a ship, sailed for three weeks, and arrived in a country with no job, no family and only one contact. Nowadays, we don't let 16-year olders leave the block without adult supervision...
I hear you Ed.. maybe I'll post something about lowering the drinking age to 18.. hmmm..
ReplyDeleteI dont think it matters what the age is.. the reason for these accidents is because the young drivers do not have to experience. No matter what the age is when teens get their license, there will always be accidents if they do not learn how to drive properly. When the age goes up the teens will also wait until they're that age to start driving and we will have the same problem that we have now.I think its the teaching that we give the teenagers before they get their license. I think we should be more strict the driving tests and if the test is failed to not let the teenager re-take it for 3 months. I think the raising the driving age is good but i don't necessarily think it will help.
ReplyDeleteI dont think it matters what the age is.. the reason for these accidents is because the young drivers do not have the experience. No matter what the age is when teens get their license, there will always be accidents if they do not learn how to drive properly. When the age goes up the teens will also wait until they're that age to start driving and we will have the same problem that we have now.I think its the teaching that we give the teenagers before they get their license. I think we should be more strict the driving tests and if the test is failed to not let the teenager re-take it for 3 months. I think the raising the driving age is good but i don't necessarily think it will help.
ReplyDeleteim from kansas and have been able to legaly drive on my own since i was 14. if i had not been able to do that it would have been lots of work for my parents. i live on a farm and i go to high school 18 miles away. with out being able to drive would have restricted me from doing many different activities.
ReplyDeleteI am seventeen years old and i can not imagine having to wait longer to get a drivers license. If i didn't have my drivers license my parents would have to drive me to work, practices, school, friends houses,other events, and then come pick me up. I'm from a small town in Kansas theres no taxi's, subways, or trains to get anywhere. Can you imagine as a parent having to run your child everywhere? What if a teenager graduates when they are 17 that would throw them in to bigger cities driving without any driving experience. Now that is just plain down stupid. It's not the driving age that's the problem it's the experience. No matter what age it is there is still going to be a problem because of lack of experience.
ReplyDeleteI hear what you are saying anon-times-3.. I probably said something similar when I was seventeen.
ReplyDeleteCheck back in 10 years.. or better yet when you have your own teenagers.. and let me know if you still agree.
UCK! I'm a twenty year old currently attending college in a larger city. I come from a rural town where car wrecks were scarce. I was able to drive when I was 15 and so was eveyone else. I have seen many young adults from other states that couldn't drive until recently and i've never seen such terrible drving or wrecks! The fact is you will be the driver everyone seems to fear no matter what age you start. The more you get to practice when your parents will be there to help you the better. Yes the age may seem low but I believe that it insures that when children do leave their parents they will have at least one skill set, driving, that they won't have to learn by trial and error.
ReplyDeleteokay well I'm a teenager and i live in a small town in Kansas (where there's no type of transportation what so ever) and the driving age was recently raised to the age of 17.i understand that teenagers can be reckless/irresponsible and BLAH BLAH BLAH but you can't classify us all like that.all teenagers DO NOT act like idiots and some of us actually have things to DO(Like school activities,sports,friends,etc.) and i don't think parents enjoy having to drive their kids everywhere especially when they have things to do also. I live in a single parent household where my mom is currently working two jobs (her normal job in the day and running a business) and I KNOW my mom does NOT have the time to be a flippin' soccer mom. my thought is, it just depends on the person how you're taught. I also think they should challenge us a bit on our driving tests.
ReplyDelete@Anon-Nov-13 - I really do not have a problem with a local/county/city governments allowing teens in rural settings to drive at a younger age. Just not on highways and not in congested cities. And if they drive irresponsibly they get their license yanked until they are older.
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