How long after cars were invented did it take a government to decide who could and could not drive one?
Wikipedia:
“The first driver’s license of sorts was issued to the inventor of the modern automobile, Karl Benz, in 1888. Because the noise and smell of his Motorwagen resulted in complaints by the citizens of Mannheim, Benz requested and received written permission by the Grand Ducal authorities to operate his car on public roads.[1]
“Up until the start of the 20th century, European authorities issued driver’s licences similarly ad hoc, if at all.[1] The first locality to require a mandatory driving licence and testing was Prussia, on 29 September 1903. The Dampfkesselüberwachungsverein (”steam boiler supervision association”) was charged with conducting the tests, which were mainly concerned with the drivers’ mechanical aptitude.[1] In 1910, the German imperial government mandated the licensing of drivers on a national scale, establishing a system of tests and driver’s education requirements that would serve as a model for the licensing laws of other countries.[1]
“As automobile-related fatalities soared in North America, public outcry provoked legislators to begin studying the French and German statutes as models.[2] On August 1, 1910, North America’s first driver’s licensing law went into effect in the U.S. state of New York, though it initially applied only to professional chauffeurs.[3] In July 1913, the state of New Jersey became the first to require all drivers to pass a mandatory examination before receiving a license.[4]
Wikipedia Article: “Driver’s license”:
“The first driver’s license of sorts was issued to the inventor of the modern automobile, Karl Benz, in 1888. Because the noise and smell of his Motorwagen resulted in complaints by the citizens of Mannheim, Benz requested and received written permission by the Grand Ducal authorities to operate his car on public roads.[1]
“Up until the start of the 20th century, European authorities issued driver’s licences similarly ad hoc, if at all.[1] The first locality to require a mandatory driving licence and testing was Prussia, on 29 September 1903. The Dampfkesselüberwachungsverein (”steam boiler supervision association”) was charged with conducting the tests, which were mainly concerned with the drivers’ mechanical aptitude.[1] In 1910, the German imperial government mandated the licensing of drivers on a national scale, establishing a system of tests and driver’s education requirements that would serve as a model for the licensing laws of other countries.[1]
“As automobile-related fatalities soared in North America, public outcry provoked legislators to begin studying the French and German statutes as models.[2] On August 1, 1910, North America’s first driver’s licensing law went into effect in the U.S. state of New York, though it initially applied only to professional chauffeurs.[3] In July 1913, the state of New Jersey became the first to require all drivers to pass a mandatory examination before receiving a license.[4]”
About two days after a guy pointed out they could charge for the issuance of a license.