BY MACKENZIE DOWNS, Sophomore
BLYTHEWOOD-- The scariest day for a parent is also the same exact day every teenager dreams about. This is the day when parents hand their kids a pair of keys to a car.
In order for teenagers to be able to drive on their own, they have to take numerous classes and successfully pass tests to get their permit, restricted, and eventually license.
There are two things which can be done when trying to get a licence. The first thing is to take a test to get a permit and then wait until they are the age of 17 and get a full license.
The other thing which can be done is take the permit test, take an eight hour class on driving, then take three two hour driving sessions with whatever driving school of the teenagers choosing. Once they have held a permit for 181 days they can take the road-skills test and if they pass, then get a restricted license.
“I didn’t want to wait until I was 17 years old in order to be able to drive by myself so I chose to go ahead and take the eight hour class and the three two hour driving classes and get my restricted,” sophomore Olivia Geitz said.
Once they pass the permit test they are only allowed to drive with someone of or over the age of 21. However, there are no time restrictions as to when they can drive with someone.
Once the teenager has had their permit for 180 days, on the 181st day they are allowed to go take the road skills test and if they pass they can get a restricted. In order to qualify to get a restricted they have to take an eight hour class.
They can choose any eight hour class of their liking to meet such requirements. One of the most popular driving classes teenagers take is the 911 Driving School.
“I chose to take my driving class with the 911 Driving School,” junior Jadia Carter said.
Once they take an eight hour class they are required to take three two hours driving sessions with a driving instructor. It is best if the learning driver spaces out their three two hour driving sessions over time and not schedule their sessions back to back.
“When I was a teenager there was none of the requirement to take an eight hour class in order to get your restricted. You could take an eight hour class to get a percentage off of your insurance but it was not a requirement,” 911 driving instructor Jeffrey Smith said.
Once they have taken all the classes and passed the road-skills test they are free to get their restricted license. With their restricted, the driver is allowed to drive by there self. However, unlike the permit they have a time restriction. They can drive from 6:00a.m-6:00p.m, or 6:00 a.m to 8:00p.m depending on extracurricular activities.
When students are 16, they are allowed to get a waiver allowing them specific reasons to drive any earlier or later than the time restrictions. These special reasons can include any of the reasons like work, school, sports, etc.
At Blythewood High School in order for a student to park in the students parking area they have to take a class called Alive @ 25. This is a four hour driving class on the safety and dangers of driving.
“I was most excited about being able to get a little bit more freedom once I got my restricted but I was entirely nervous about driving on my own and about the other drivers on the road,” Geitz said.
Once they turn 17, students are allowed to receive their full driver’s license. With a full driver’s license they are allowed to drive any time they want and with anyone they would like or all by themselves.
