New Jersey Learners Permit Restriction - NJ Examination Permit Rules
Your first step towards achieving a drivers license in New Jersey is applying for a learners permit. The learners permit gives you a chance to practice your driving skills before you take the road skills exam and it comes with certain limitations. The reason behind the New Jersey permit restrictions is the fact that inexperienced drivers are highly likely to be involved in a traffic accident and permit restrictions are called upon to defuse most of the potentially dangerous situations.
Whether it's a special learners permit you are applying for or an examination driving permit, the restrictions that are placed on the permit are fairly similar and are dictated by the New Jersey graduated drivers license system. The program applies to drivers of all ages, so don't think you can skip it if you are over 21 years of age. If you want to learn more about the graduated driver license laws in New Jersey, please consult the New Jersey drivers license manual.
Permit Restrictions - Why Do We Need Them
The answer is simple - learners permit restrictions are there to ensure safety of both newly licensed drivers and those who surround them on the roads. When you make a mistake behind the wheel, there is a chance that you will not only hurt yourself, but also cause damages, both physical and financial, to other people. As a new driver, you don't have much driving experience yet, so even if you know how to deal with dangerous situations in theory, there is no guarantee that you will be able to apply this knowledge when a potentially hazardous situations arises. The driving permit restrictions prevent you from getting into those dangerous situations and help you avoid most of the mistakes made by new drivers.
Age Dependent Driving Permit Restrictions
Teenage drivers are under even more risks when it comes to driving. Statistics show that drivers under the age of 18 have the highest risk of having a traffic accident among all other age groups. In order to address this issue, the New Jersey MVC and corresponding agencies of other states conducted multiple studies and identified the most common causes of traffic accidents among teenage drivers. Consequently, a number of additional restrictions were developed specifically for young drivers.
Different Types of Licenses
As per the graduated license rules, you cannot be issued with a New Jersey driver license right away and you have to follow all graduated license stages. There are specific restrictions attributable to every stage of the GDL process. Restrictions that you'll need to observe are dictated by the type of a licensing document that you currently hold, that can be as following:
- Special learners permit
- Examination permit
- Provisional drivers license
After the provisional drivers license comes a full unrestricted license that doesn't have any restrictions on it. The minimum age for the unrestricted license is 18 and you must fulfill all graduated license requirements before you can be granted this type of license.
Special Learners Permit Restrictions
A special learners permit can be issued to applicants who are between 16 and 17 years of age and are currently enrolled in a state-approved behind the wheel driving program. Before your permit gets validated, you must also take a New Jersey permit test at one of the Driver License Testing facilities. The test will have 50 questions and cover the state driving rules and road signs. You may check out a sample New Jersey practice test to see what it's like.
The special learners permit must be held for at least 6 months before you can take a road test and apply for your provisional license. During this time, the following driving permit restrictions must be observed:
- Supervised driving only. Whenever you operate a vehicle, you must have a licensed driver who is at least 21 years of age, has at least 4 years of driving experience and holds a current New Jersey driver license seated next to you.
- Curfew. No driving between 11:01 p.m. and 5:00 a.m.
- Safety belts. Seat belts must be worrn by everyone in the vehicle.
- Passenger restrictions. Only parents, guardians or dependents are allowed as passengers and only one passenger is allowed if the supervising driver is not a parent.
- A decal must be placed on the vehicle license plates
- No cell phones. You can't use a cell phone or any other electronic device while driving a vehicle.
Examination Permit Restrictions
Examination permits are issued to license applicants who are at least 17 years of age. Restrictions that are placed on the examination learners permit holders are the same as for the special learners permit, however drivers who are at least 21 years of age don't need to observe the passenger or curfew restrictions.
Provisional Drivers License Restrictions
Provisional drivers license can be issued to those who completed the learners permit requirements, is at least 17 years old and passed the driver test. Your provisional license allows you to drive unsupervised, but all permit restrictions still apply to you. Once again, drivers who are at least 21 years old do not need to observe the curfew and passenger restrictions.
