State's teens not in a rush to drive

FORT LAUDERDALE - State transportation data show Florida teenagers are waiting longer to get drivers licenses, possibly because of tougher requirements.

Sixteen-year-olds now account for only 40 percent of all teen licenses issued, compared with 60 percent in 1991, according to Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles statistics.

Drivers ages 18 or 19 accounted for 40 percent of licenses issued, up from 24 percent.

"I could get the license if I took the test, I just don't feel the urgency," said Kevin Krutek, a 16-year-old Pompano Beach high school junior. "I don't see what the big deal is."

The state now requires teens to start with a learner's permit for a year before even applying for a regular license, and those under 21 have curfews unless driving to or from work.

There are also financial factors.

Gas and insurance cost more, and teens who have to pay for their own wheels might find it's not worth it even if the car takes them to a job.

"We have kids whose families don't own a car," said Albert Guzzo, a driver's education instructor in Hallandale. "They walk or take the bus."

Some teens are leery to get behind the wheel after seeing friends get hurt.

Danielle Mueller didn't get her license until age 18 because two of her classmates were killed in separate crashes. Now 20, the Plantation woman said she just started driving on Interstate 95 between home and college at the University of Central Florida.

Kevin Krutek's mother, Bim Krutek, also wonders if protective parents willing to chauffeur kids are making licenses less necessary.

"I have a midnight limit" on weekends, she said, "but some of the parents go and pick them up at 3 o'clock in the morning."

[Last modified November 5, 2007, 00:21:21]