By Nathan Duke
Staff Writer

Zander Furlong, 16, makes sure all is clear during on-the-road instruction on Tuesday, May 24. Teens have to take an intensive driver's education course to be able to drive at 16 in New Hampshire. (Nathan Duke Photo)

Whether it is to commute to school, drive themselves to their jobs or simply go out with friends without having to hitch a ride with their parents, most local teens agree that getting their driver's license is a top priority when they turn 16.

Each year, hundreds of area teens take extensive, time-consuming driver's education classes to ensure the days of catching a ride to the mall with their parents are in the rearview mirror.

Though many have other motives for getting their licenses, including transportation to school and work and going on dates, most of them agreed it will be a relief to take a ride in the family car without the entire family in it.

"It's not really cool going places in the car with your parents," said Goffstown High School junior Zander Furlong, 16.

Over the years, reasons for getting a license have expanded, said John Pacheco, a Goffstown High School driving instructor and owner of Chico's Driving Center, LLC.

"I've watched it change over the years," he said. "With my generation, (getting a license) was about freedom. Now, it seems more to do with jobs and getting to school."

Goffstown High sophomore Briana Willander, 16, said her incentive for getting a license is providing her own transportation to school and the variety of athletics in which she takes part.

"I need to be able to get to practice for sports - soccer, basketball and track - and get to school," she said.

Though her parents paid for her driver's education classes, Willander will work this summer to pay for car insurance and gas.

While Willander needs a license to participate in extracurricular activities, other students will have to give up those activities to get their licenses.

Students must first take 30 hours of coursework plus 10 hours behind the wheel of a car. Upon completing the classes, they are required to drive anoth- er 20 hours with an adult accompanying them. Then the students take their driving, written and vision tests to obtain their licenses.

Sandy Wolfe, owner of Amherstbased Pedal Pushers Inc., said students must be prepared to dedicate significant time to getting their licenses.

"Most kids count the days until they get their license because it is a stepping stone to their freedom," she said. "Many must give up a sport for a season because (driver's education) courses are pretty intensive. They have to make (getting a license) the main thing they are doing for that period of time, and they do."

Learning to drive
Though students dedicate the required time for driving lessons and driver's education coursework, the road to good driving is not always an easy one. Many local teens said they had difficulty learning driving maneuvers, such as parallel parking or backing into a parking space.

Goffstown High junior Jaclyn Wall said her biggest challenge is changing lanes on the highway. When she turns around to look for oncoming traffic in the opposite lane, she often accidentally turns the wheel as well.

Manchester High School West sophomore Brian Watson of Hooksett is halfway through the process of getting his license. He listed several reasons why being able to drive is important to him.

"It is partly because I plan to get a summer job and partly because the (school) bus driver drives crazily," he said.

However, his life has not revolved around getting his license, as other teenagers have.

"It is not the most important thing in the world to me," he said.

No more free ride
For other local teens, being able to drive is of little importance.

Hooksett's Rachel Jacobi is 18 years old and is only now in the process of getting her license. She said she was finally forced to take driver's education because her parents, both working professionals, will no longer give her rides.

"I think it is really strange how we have no public transportation in Hooksett," she said. "Car insurance for teens is atrocious and there are no sidewalks anywhere, making it unsafe to walk. It would be a lot more realistic and environmentally efficient if everyone did not have to have their own vehicle to transport themselves."

Bedford's Connell Thompson, who attends Bishop Guertin High School, is among the local students whom a license will help only in theory. He, like many other students, will not have his own car and will likely continue to use various methods of transportation.

Thompson, whose parents will only allow him to get his license after reaching the Boy Scout rank of Eagle Scout, said he will continue to ride with friends and family to school and his job at the Mall of New Hampshire.

"Due to the lack of a car, I'll probably continue to use the carpool system, which is a little more energy and monetarily efficient," he said.

Parking problems
For many local teenagers, how to drive a car is not as much of a concern as where to leave it.

Parking has been an ongoing problem at a number of area schools, including West and Central high schools in Manchester, Bow High School and Goffstown High School.

Goffstown High currently has 335 available parking spaces, 150 of which are reserved for staff, leaving students to vie for the remaining 185 spaces.

The Goffstown Board of Selectmen recently enacted an ordinance that prohibits students from parking on Wallace Road, following complaints by residents.

Limited parking spaces and lot reductions have forced many local students to either rely on public transportation to get to school or wake up earlier to get a space.

"Some kids get on the school bus at 6:30 a.m. and, if they have after school activities, do not get home until 5 p.m.," said Pacheco. "That can be a heck of a long day."

Students at Central and West do not even have school parking spaces to vie for. One of the most heavily-concentrated parking areas for West students is "The Pit," a parking lot at the corner of Douglas and Granite streets, as well as the Granite State Glass parking lot across the street.

Currently, part of "The Pit" is under construction, leaving students with even less places to park. In the next school year, parking at "The Pit" will no longer be available.

"It's a huge problem. People are late to class because they cannot get spots," said senior Ann Marie Lenza, 17, of Bedford. "My friends park illegally all the time just to get to class on time." Lenza said getting up early to fight for spaces has left many students exhausted.

"A lot of people sleep during class because they are just dead," she said. Juniors Adam Laszewski and Joe Cronin said they often wake up as early as 6 a.m. just to get a spot, and ever that early, they have to settle for one relatively far away from the school.

Many students are forced to park illegally to get to class on time, resulting in a pileup of parking tickets.

Bedford junior Brianne Baity, 17, recently received three $20 parking tickets in one week by parking at "The Pit" and she said her car was not even blocking other cars.

She described the parking situation at West as "horrible."

"I often have to park ridiculously far away and find myself running to school to get to class on time," she said. "It is getting competitive to find a space in the morning. Students keep getting up earlier and earlier."

Bow High School Principal George Edwards said parking becomes a problem after the first few months of autumn.

"Because of snowbanks, parking becomes tighter and students scramble for whatever little piece of blacktop is available in front of the school's entrance," he said. "In the spring, we have a whole year of sophomores now who have their licenses, so (parking) tends to be a little more difficult."

Several students said the most difficult driving maneuver to learn was backing into a space. But for many, the most difficult aspect of driving is finding a space to back into.