License or Uber?

According to a New York Times article, a 16 year old by the name of Jonathon Golden elected not to go get his license on his birthday, but get an Uber account. He is not alone in this path, as many of his friends and other teens around the country are doing the same. They claim that Uber takes the hassle out of physically driving. Rather than actually tuning in to drive, he teens can sit in the back on their phones with the same functionality of owning a car. They can pick up friends or dates, go where they need to, and split the cost as if it was gas money (for friends, not dates).

From a monetary perspective, this is a smart move. If you add up cost of a car, insurance for a young driver, gas, maintenance, parking, and sometimes tickets, being a 16 year old driver can be quite costly. But, Uber may be a cheaper option if you use it when you need and split the bill with friends. Right now, this wouldn't be a total replacement for driving because going long distances in a Uber is unrealistic, but these teens still have their parents to ride with in those instances.

Maybe it is easier to just call an Uber to go hang out with friends on the weekend or after school. Maybe it is cheaper and safer as well. But there is no way in hell I would do that if I was in the shoes of 16 year olds today. I speak for many when I say I really enjoy driving but there's more to it than that. Some of the best memories from my junior and senior years of high school came in or just outside my or my friends' cars. My younger sister and I became much closer once I started driving her to school. Summer nights driving around with friend and girl friends are unforgettable times. I used Kyleigh's Law as an excuse to drink at parties countless times (sorry to the people outside of NJ who don't get that one). What I'm trying to say is, I couldn't imagine high school without driving everywhere with my friends and sister. I wouldn't want to be in a car with a new stranger every time I tried to go hang out with friends. It puts a damper on conversations, music, and stupid things we all did in our cars. These kids may think they are being savvy by avoiding the "burden" of driving, but they're really being lazy and will probably miss a lot of memories in their high school years.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/09/style/for-some-teenagers-16-candles-mean-its-time-to-join-uber.html?ref=technology