When does your driver's license expire? Before you get your wallet out, I'll tell you - it's sometime within the next four years. I know that because New Jersey issues four year driver's licenses. I've had seven since I got my first one in 1981, and it will be time for another soon.
A letter to the editor in one of the newspapers today expressed surprise that the fee for a NJ license was just $24. I agree that this is a bargain - what else can you get for just $6 a year? The letter writer suggests raising the fee to $100 - in order to raise money for highways and bridges, etc. - a fee that he believes is in line with other fees and expenses incurred by New Jersey residents.
I tend to agree - with one exception. That $100 license should be good for 10 years, not 4. This would still nearly double the yearly fee, but would save drivers the needless aggravation of the 4 year renewals, reduce the crowds at the MVC offices, and reduce the expenses associated with processing the renewals.
And as Governor Jon Corzine has reminded us, New Jersey residents expect more for the fees and taxes they pay - so why not a 10 year license. We promise to drive the speed limit!
My wife and I recently renewed our licenses in Somerville. We were in and out in 30 minutes. I won't say it was pleasant, but it didn't hurt either.
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