To be constantly surprised that people 'don't drive'?

[MissEloiseBridgerton]

Every day on here, and on my own social media, I am shocked that soooo many people don't drive. My local FB group is constantly people asking for favours because they don't drive, they want a dump run, or someone to deliver second hand stuff to them. On here, the barriers to work, to childcare, to anything is so often that they don't drive!

For me growing up, learning to drive was just what you did. I don't have any friends who didn't learn to drive at 17. Most had cheap runarounds or borrowed parents car.

I totally understand it's expensive and costly to run a car but I don't think I realised how many people never learned!

And your point?

Until you want to go somewhere that isn't on a bus route.

Why does someone always have to bring this sort of thing up on here? It's exhausting. Obviously OBVIOUSLY the OP doesn't meant people who can't drive - that is nothing to do with this conversation at all. But just to add did you know it is possible to be disabled and still be able to drive? 🙄

I think people who say they "don't understand" must not be very bright. I'm not sure why people struggle to understand something so very simple!

I don't drive because I have no desire to, and I wouldn't even if lessons were free actually. If that's too hard for someone to wrap their head around I'd just assume they're very narrow minded.

Why are people still coming onto the thread going 'I don't understand it either' when people have quite clearly explained reasons why earlier in the thread? Am I going completely mad....

Exactly. They’re just making themselves look very foolish at this point.

Is @MissEloiseBridgerton coming back on to thank everyone for letting her know the various reasons why some can’t drive so she doesn’t have to wonder anymore?

Not everyone lives in a City and not everyone is within walking distance of the station.

My mother lives in a village on the South Coast. The first bus is now 9.20 and they are hourly. The Dr's is half a mile away and the station three quarters, the village with shops a mile. The hospital is now two buses and well timed it takes 1.t hours.

She is 88 and can no longer drive. Step is hanging in there with the driving and more and more elderly will drive when they shouldn't due to poor bus services. The local cab firms won't do short runs without a very long wait and the council have blocked uber.

It’s really not that serious

@MissEloiseBridgerton
I know someone who does not have good coordination at all! Just born like this. They feel because if this they would be unsafe to drive. Very sensible.

I've lived in large cities with reliable public transport. There was zero need for me to learn to drive. I come from the country with free public transport too so there was definitely no need to spend money on keeping the car. My family also didn't have a car and I am not convinced any of them could drive except for my aunt's husband who is a builder so needs to be mobile.
My aunt learned at 50 when she wanted to move to a farm. I learned at 38 when I moved to a more remote area. I never asked for favours. I am quite happy to book a man and a van if I need something bulky delivered and I do my shopping once every couple of days rather than "one big weekly shop" so perfectly happy to do it on foot or to use a bike. My 83 year-old grandmother does daily shopping trips on foot which, alongside climbing up to her 4th floor flat in a building without a lift, is her exercise.
I literally have had zero need to drive and didn't have any drivers in my family who thought it was an "essential life skill".

Neither myself not my sibling could afford it when we were young, neither could our parents. We grew up in a town with good transport links so it wasn't an essential.
Later, I learned but a combination of poor vision and other factors mean I seldom do so now. However, I also seldom ask for lifts/things to be dropped to me.

Friend of mine learned to drive when young but has developed serious health issues and now can't drive.

There are may reasons why people don't drive, but feeling entitled to people being at their beck and call isn't necessarily a factor. That's just some people.

It’s very expensive, I too was surprised when working in a large male dominated office, most of the guys wives and girlfriends didn’t drive.

They were always mentioning taking them shopping at the time.

But it is expensive, and I don’t think girls needs were prioritised, when I was young.

I was lucky enough to learn to drive and get my first car by luck.
Or I too would not be able to afford to learn, or hope to buy a car.

I found I earned less than men, but if I hadn’t been afforded this chance, I couldn’t have got a job very easily either.

It can have a major impact on life chances.

So being able to drive didn't help your mother then if she can no longer drive due to her age.

Most of us who are non drivers live somewhere that we can easily access public transport. Those that do drive, like your mother, and then find themselves unable to drive when they get elderly are the ones more likely to have an issue as they have planned their lives around having a car.

Medically I'm not allowed to drive , it sucks but I'd be a danger on the roads. Learning to drive is also bloody expensive which is probably a barrier to a lot of People as well. Not to mention the cost of buying, owning and maintaining a car.

I was lucky to learn and pass my test when booking a test was something your instructor did when you were ready and that was that.

Now booking a test is an Olympic sport, people's theory tests run out before they can get a practical test booked, it's insanity and surprising that anyone gets a license now.

I've got in mind two other threads going on at the moment - one about how difficult it now is for young people to get jobs (so no 'Saturday jobs' to pay for lessons if your parents can't) and then another about people who feel they always need to be picked up from the airport, presumably because they're inexperienced at getting anywhere without their car.

We all drive and DCs passed tests and were given safe cars to drive the minute they could. They couldn't do /get to their jobs easily without it.
30 mins drive vs 3 hours on public transport one way. As in 6 hour commute on trains and buses.
We are close to M25 too but public transport outside central London is abysmal.
If you live rurally and can't drive it must be much worse.
They are very lucky as we could afford to put them in this position, but it literally cost us thousands.
I observe this daily, especially at work and amongst DCs colleagues too how many youngsters maybe passed a test but could never afford running a car.
Insurance alone ( home counties ) in some " cheap " runaround car , will set you back around £3-4000.
Insurance drops " slightly " for safer cars costing £10k plus.
Many don't earn the money
to be able to afford to drive, it limits them taking jobs that require mobility, nor can many afford move out either, a small rented room in London with better transport will cost you £1000-£1500 monthly.
Vicious circle.
So there's my contribution why many young ones don't drive.
It makes me mad, what has this country come to.

Was I the only one paying rent and bills at 17? Disabled by 27? The faux astonishment here is extremely off putting. Life is way more complex/nuanced than this

@NeverDropYourMooncup whats being disabled got to do with it? Loads of disabled people drive

I don't drive and am an "older woman". Don't need to and am fully independent. There are these things called buses, trains and taxis.

I lived in London for 40 years and there was simply no need to drive. Live in another city now and the same applies.

I have thought about learning, but the amount of aggressive and terrible drivers there are on the road puts me off.

I would have loved to drive.

Neither of my parents had the money for lessons or a car etc (they also didn't drive) and once I left home I was stupid, bought a bunch of stuff I didn't need, got into a lot of debt and couldn't afford it.
Managed to work my way up to where I am now but then I started to get unwell and got progressively worse. Now I'm unable to legally drive due to my health.
Really wish I could go back at yell at myself to save up and get lessons, life would be so much easier with a car.

Love your username by the way, I'm (im) patiently waiting for the next series to start 😁

That's really ableist, most disabled people are perfectly able to drive.

Obviously some people can't afford a car, but I agree OP, so many posts complaining about something that would be easily sorted if they could drive and the majority of them have a driving partner, so there is a car available.

Wow!
I drive now but had to find my own funds in my 20s. Had to leave home as a young teen. Bright but no support or experience within family to get me to uni. Had to pay rent the day I left school at 16 ( paid for by pt job while I studied ft).
There are many many children who live like this. Driving is a massive advantage but having a roof and food has to come first.

Lot of privilege in this post.

Jesus. Was £13 an hour when I was learning in 1998

@AffableApple also a lot of people with a huge chip on their shoulder