Pennsylvania Learners Permit
Obtaining the Pennsylvania learners permit is the first step on the way towards obtaining a drivers license. No matter how old you are, you will still have to get a drivers permit before obtaining your Pennsylvania license.
Applying for Drivers Permit
The minimum age for obtaining the learner's permit in Pennsylvania is 16. The first step of the process is having a medical examination and getting your doctor to sign form DL 180 (applicants who are under 18 years of age will also need to present the parent consent form DL 180TD). Once you have the form signed, you can schedule your learners permit exam with PennDOT. The exam can be scheduled online or you may also visit one of the PennDOT offices in person.
The learners permit exam that you take at the Pennsylvania DMV office covers the driving rules and road signs and has 18 questions on it. You have to get at least 15 correct answers in order to pass the test.
You should know that most teenagers fail the permit exam the first time they take it and the reason for that is lack of education. The test is seemingly easy and that's what fails most of the students - they take one or two permit practice tests and think they are prepared. In order to ensure your success on the test, you should obtain the Pennsylvania drivers handbook and go through it at least once. Practice tests can be used to supplement the book, but they are not self sufficient.
When you pass your learners permit exam, you will be issued with your Pennsylvania drivers permit.
Pennsylvania Permit Restrictions
If you got your learners permit, you can finally get behind the wheel and start driving. Remember though that the learners permit allows supervised driving only and you cannot drive unless there is a licensed driver seating next to you at all times. The permit also has other restrictions, such as the curfew and passenger restrictions. Failure to obey these limitation may see your learners permit revoked.
Upgrading Your Permit To Drivers License
The only way for you to upgrade to the Pennsylvania drivers license is to take a driving exam at PennDOT. Applicants who are under 18 years of age must have held the drivers permit for at least 6 months before applying for the license and upon successful completion of the driving test they are issued with a Junior license that allows unsupervised driving but still has the same passenger and curfew restrictions as the learners permit. The Junior license is upgraded to the unrestricted license once the holder turns 18.
Learners Permit and Drivers Ed
Pennsylvania drivers education classes is a great way for you to prepare for your future on public roads. Drivers ed classes usually provide a comprehensive coverage of the Pennsylvania driving rules, prepare you for the permit exam and allow you to obtain your unrestricted license when you are 17 and ½. Although obtaining your unrestricted license 6 months sooner may seem like a great bonus, there are other advantages to taking the course. Not only you get prepared for your learner's permit knowledge test and get your unrestricted license sooner, but you also receive a substantial insurance discount when you start driving. Just present your insurance agent with your certificate of completion when you obtain your insurance policy.
The drivers education classes, restricted licenses and the extended holding period for the learners permit are all part of the Pennsylvania graduated drivers license system that was designed to keep the teenage drivers safe.
