The “Drive” To Pare Down Debt

During the 25 years I spent in publishing, I’ve taken more car service rides to airports or events than I care to remember. I used to keep a tally just for kicks but stopped at about 250.

So, a number of years ago when ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft debuted, I stubbornly continued either to avail myself of my local transportation service or use my personal car– which during convention season meant sticking it in long-term parking at JFK and LaGuardia.

Last month I’m sure I became just about the last person in the U.S. to take an Uber. The booking process was relatively easy – even for a technology Luddite like myself and the rides showed up promptly and certainly less expensive than my former method of getting around.

I also noticed many of the drivers were young, some not all that long out of college. So, I struck up a brief but lively conversation with one who explained that he was driving in his spare time (he had another full-time job) to help pay off his student loans. He explained that he can make up to $100 a night on week days and on weekends that could easily reach $300.

That came in handy as he also revealed that he had some $50K in student loans to pay off.

For those of you who don’t have children in college or are paying off school loans, let me throw out a few shocking statistics on the level of education debt in the U.S.

Currently, there is some $1.5 trillion in student loan debt in the country spread out among roughly 44 million borrowers. To put that number in perspective, that’s $620 billion more than the nation has in credit card debt. The average loan is approaching $40,000 per and median monthly payout is $351.

I envisioned this young man driving until he’s 65 until he has cleared his financial slate, but he assured me he could wipe it clean in five years.

I thought that a bit optimistic but wished him luck. Even he admitted he would still have countless runs to the New York area airports when all is said and done. He then suggested I apply for a part time post. I told him that driving in and around the New York area over the years has often resulted blood pressure readings that rival the current Dow Jones index.

But hey, never say never even though my school loans are long satisfied.