SPOKANE -- It's not cheap to get a teen licensed these days with the costs of driver's ed, a vehicle, car insurance, and gas. That's why many parents are opting to wait a few years before letting their teens get behind the wheel.
One local driver's ed teachers says more students are waiting until they're 17, 18 and sometimes up to 20-years-old.
One study shows only 1/3 of 16-year-olds across the U.S. got their licenses in 2008, that's down by almost 25% from 20 years ago.
"My parents didn't have the money for it and my sister didn't have her license until she was 18," one student told KREM 2 News.
Many drivers, young and old, admit roads are probably safer the longer teens wait to get licensed.
But the good news is, teen driving deaths are down nationwide, in some places by almost 50%.
