The average undergrad debt is around $30K, last time I saw numbers. Not great, but not life altering either.
IMO the real issue with the cost of college is that many students just can’t even consider attending a 4 year college due to finances…the relatively high costs (compared to average family incomes) puts a traditional college experience out of reach for so many students/families.
These students are left with options such as the military, trades, job right out of high school, attend a low ranked directional state school, or attend CC, get an associates degree and/or transfer to a 4 year school.
Some students will have successful lives following those paths, but probably better for our country in many ways if more students were able to get bachelor’s degrees.