I let my folks know that I’m getting rid of my drivers licence, because I don’t plan on driving for at least the next 5 years.
My parents then said things like, “you’re moving backwards in life”, or “what will you do if you need to transport someone in an emergency?”, to which I responded, “Taxi, or ambulance”.
Am I a fool? Should I retain my licence for emergencies? I’m broke ATM, but should start working again soon, and my licence is expiring in a few weeks (and my wallet fell in a river a week ago, so I don’t have the card anyways, not even kidding), so I’d rather not pay the $90 to keep it, if I don’t have to.
What about you? Do you still keep a license handy for situations, or no? Is living car and license free possible in Canada?
I think it is wiser to keep the legal right to drive even if you do not end up using it.
In an emergency, a taxi or car share ride could take a while to get to you and also might refuse your ride (if going to the hospital for an emergency, for example). Or you might find yourself in a position where someone who drove becomes unable to do so to get you or themselves home (sick, drunk, whatever) and you could help out. You also might decide to rent a car for some specific purpose at some point, such as for traveling somewhere with poor public transit or if you need a truck for hauling stuff.
I like to err on the side of preparedness.
Being able to drive could also be a requirement of some future job. (Even if it’s not a core duty)
That’s true and I should have thought of that. I’ve had two jobs which weren’t driving-related but required me to drive to different locations.
thanks for the perspective. I think I will keep it. I just hate all the costs associated with driving, and I don’t even drive, and have to pay this and that.
And yeah, I have been in situations where I needed to drive, like helping a buddy drive a uhaul, or when another buddy passed out, I drove him to the hospital just in case he dropped behind the wheel.
I think aspiring to a car free lifestyle is great, but there’s nothing wrong with renting every once in a while. For the few times in your life that you need to move, renting a Uhaul will save you a ton of money over using a moving company. And there’s a few times where renting a truck when purchasing a large appliance will save you over having things delivered.
im curious do all of yall live in very urban environments and have good car free infrastructure? I could not imagine relying on trains, busses, etc. that would add hours of travel time to my day
I use my bike to get around and recently upgraded to an ebike to help with hills and so that I’m not sweating when I get to where I’m going. I find I can get most places about as fast as a car since I can avoid traffic. For longer trips, I’m thinking of getting an escooter to get me to the train station and then the rest of the way.
In an emergency, you don’t need a license to drive. Poor people don’t really rent a car for a weekend jaunt.
Oh, I didn’t know that. That’s not the case here in the US, as far as I’m aware.
It’s not the case in Canada either. Driving without a licence is illegal whether it’s an emergency or not
Maybe don’t tell the police that you don’t have a license.
If there is an emergency and they only thing preventing you from preventing human harm is that you don’t have a license, then fucking drive anyway. It doesn’t matter if it is legal or not.
if you dont have a license and never drove you may cause more harm than good? Driving is assumed to be easy because 16 years olds do it but everyone a pretty shitty driver til they get years of daily experience
Of course I would–I was just talking about legality.
I do think that if a family member were to drop unconscious, I would drive regardless, but not having the potential legal trouble afterwards is a nice thing to have, in case the cops got involved or something.