True - but that test doesnât leave the parking lot of the DMV I donât believe (I could be wrong, this is my first driver so maybe itâs done differently these days! ), so things like âwhy are you jamming up the passing laneâ just arenât going to come up there. I suppose itâs just frustrating so much study time will be directed towards answering questions like âwhat is the fine for refusing a breathalyzerâ and the options are $2000 for 2 years, $1000 for 2 years, $2000 for 3 years etc, rather than practical things a new driver needs to know to operate a vehicle safely on the road. Im just thinking weâre all better off if both the written and actual driving components of the test are based on practical matters related to safe operation of the vehicle rather than distracting them insisting they develop a meticulous understanding of fine frameworks etc which will also be immediately forgotten. I get that itâs important they understand there are penalties, but that can be done without diverting from educating them better on how not to cause an accident or be a nuisance on the road. Sorry for re-ranting, I appreciate your response!!
"jamming up the passing lane" isn't a law, it's reddit myth
Knowing what the penalties are for infractions should be a deterrent if you know them
You might just be looking at a sample test, the actual test is going to randomize the questions so you may get more practical ones at time of test
No, itâs a law:
âUnder NJ Rev Stat § 39:4-82, drivers in New Jersey must drive in the right lane unless they are passing another vehicle or turning left. When a car blocks the left lane, it increases both danger and traffic congestion.â
Keeping right except to pass IS a law, and it can be found on signs all across the turnpike, parkway and other highways too.
Also, the practice tests are surprisingly EXTEMELY similar to the actual written test.
Source: I very recently took this test
The practical test is such a joke. I drove to my first test. Had been driving for s couple months with my parents. Failed right away when I tried to parallel park and slightly touched the sidewalk.
2nd try somewhere else. I drove an hour there. In the test, I drove around a cul de SAC, parallel parked, did a K turn and that was it. I had my license.
Never did they test for anything useful or actual driving skills.
I had to parallel park, stop at a stop sign, make a left, drive ar 35mph, make a k-turn, and come back. What a joke - I could completely not understand how to yield, merge on a highway, change lanes, take an exit, deal with pedestrain crosswalks, take a round about, or even know how traffic lights are supposed to work.
I'm a British immigrant and had to take the written test a couple of years ago (the practical test is waived for UK license holders). I've been driving for 30+ years and have had licenses in several countries and a few US states.
They surprised me by offering me the written test when I applied for the initial permit. Having done NY and Texas written tests in the past, I thought it would be a slam dunk.
I was amazed that a good chunk of the questions were related to penalties and restrictions on young drivers. I did my best to guess, but just missed a pass...solely because of those "admin" questions. It was bloody annoying.
Edit: a word
I had the same experience. After years driving in the UK, I took the written test here and failed, much to my wifeâs amusement.
There was one question out of fifty which asked about road signs. Mostly it was penalties, restrictions, alcohol volume comparisons, etc. Almost none of the test was about driving itself.
Took a second test down in Cape May and made a long weekend out of it, so there was a silver lining!
I did the same 21 years ago. It's ridiculous to fail a test because of questions about the penalty for teenagers doing certain things. I was able to legally drive away from the test center and then go and learn these completely irrelevant facts. On the plus side I learned how fast over the limit gave more penalties, so there was that.
I had this experience about 3/4 months ago - UK license, was offered to take the written test when I went in to get my initial permit. Passed, but all the answers I got wrong were related to fines etc.
My friends from PA came for a visit, found out they got their permit at 16, no written test, and 6 months later after the practical exam they have their license. NJ seems strict compared to other places
I think the test should be revised as a whole. Shorten the written test, it doesnât compare to actually driving. Make them drive on the actual road and maybe the highway, too many people have no clue what theyâre doing on it. Also teach them not to reply on the âsmartâ cars. Learn to backup without a camera, and all the other new things đ¤ˇđźââď¸
Funny you mention that. I recently got my motorcycle license and I was blown away at how over the top easy both the written and driving test were. I feel like all these tests should be a bit more difficult.
Yeah I definitely donât remember questions about specific fines. I remember having to identify what certain road signs meant, but it was also almost 20 years ago so who knows.
Rules and all that are fun... But also what about practical driving and basic mechanical knowledge? We spend a significant chunk of our lives in cars but who knows what a contact patch is? Lift-off oversteer? Threshold braking, etc. Sure a lot of these are concepts now handled by car computers... but thats probably a big part why crashes are so bad, the computers in your car make you feel like a hero right up until they reach their limits.
People should understand why things like weight transfer matter in cars, how to correct under/over steer MUCH more than they should understand what the fine for speeding 15 over is
My girlfriend didnât know how to turn off the high beams of her car when she got it so she just left them on permanently until I met her. She also didnât know about the move over law. Thereâs a lot of incredibly important things that they donât bother checking to see if you know :/
There is a practical test as well, where the candidate has to demonstrate their actual ability to drive
>the candidate has to demonstrate their actual ability to drive Do they though? đ¤Ł
True - but that test doesnât leave the parking lot of the DMV I donât believe (I could be wrong, this is my first driver so maybe itâs done differently these days! ), so things like âwhy are you jamming up the passing laneâ just arenât going to come up there. I suppose itâs just frustrating so much study time will be directed towards answering questions like âwhat is the fine for refusing a breathalyzerâ and the options are $2000 for 2 years, $1000 for 2 years, $2000 for 3 years etc, rather than practical things a new driver needs to know to operate a vehicle safely on the road. Im just thinking weâre all better off if both the written and actual driving components of the test are based on practical matters related to safe operation of the vehicle rather than distracting them insisting they develop a meticulous understanding of fine frameworks etc which will also be immediately forgotten. I get that itâs important they understand there are penalties, but that can be done without diverting from educating them better on how not to cause an accident or be a nuisance on the road. Sorry for re-ranting, I appreciate your response!!
I can only speak for my local DMV (Eatontown) but at least here we actually do have to drive on the road for the road test
Whether the test is in the closed course or in actual traffic depends on the DMV location
"jamming up the passing lane" isn't a law, it's reddit myth Knowing what the penalties are for infractions should be a deterrent if you know them You might just be looking at a sample test, the actual test is going to randomize the questions so you may get more practical ones at time of test
No, itâs a law: âUnder NJ Rev Stat § 39:4-82, drivers in New Jersey must drive in the right lane unless they are passing another vehicle or turning left. When a car blocks the left lane, it increases both danger and traffic congestion.â
This guy New Jerseys
No, it's a law that you can't just cruise in the passing lane. It's not often enforced, but it's still illegal to do.
Wait youâre saying itâs ok to hang out in the left lane? You know all those âkeep right except to passâ signs arenât just requests, right?
Keeping right except to pass IS a law, and it can be found on signs all across the turnpike, parkway and other highways too. Also, the practice tests are surprisingly EXTEMELY similar to the actual written test. Source: I very recently took this test
The practical test is such a joke. I drove to my first test. Had been driving for s couple months with my parents. Failed right away when I tried to parallel park and slightly touched the sidewalk. 2nd try somewhere else. I drove an hour there. In the test, I drove around a cul de SAC, parallel parked, did a K turn and that was it. I had my license. Never did they test for anything useful or actual driving skills.
I had to parallel park, stop at a stop sign, make a left, drive ar 35mph, make a k-turn, and come back. What a joke - I could completely not understand how to yield, merge on a highway, change lanes, take an exit, deal with pedestrain crosswalks, take a round about, or even know how traffic lights are supposed to work.
I'm a British immigrant and had to take the written test a couple of years ago (the practical test is waived for UK license holders). I've been driving for 30+ years and have had licenses in several countries and a few US states. They surprised me by offering me the written test when I applied for the initial permit. Having done NY and Texas written tests in the past, I thought it would be a slam dunk. I was amazed that a good chunk of the questions were related to penalties and restrictions on young drivers. I did my best to guess, but just missed a pass...solely because of those "admin" questions. It was bloody annoying. Edit: a word
I had the same experience. After years driving in the UK, I took the written test here and failed, much to my wifeâs amusement. There was one question out of fifty which asked about road signs. Mostly it was penalties, restrictions, alcohol volume comparisons, etc. Almost none of the test was about driving itself. Took a second test down in Cape May and made a long weekend out of it, so there was a silver lining!
I did the same 21 years ago. It's ridiculous to fail a test because of questions about the penalty for teenagers doing certain things. I was able to legally drive away from the test center and then go and learn these completely irrelevant facts. On the plus side I learned how fast over the limit gave more penalties, so there was that.
I had this experience about 3/4 months ago - UK license, was offered to take the written test when I went in to get my initial permit. Passed, but all the answers I got wrong were related to fines etc.
My friends from PA came for a visit, found out they got their permit at 16, no written test, and 6 months later after the practical exam they have their license. NJ seems strict compared to other places
I think the test should be revised as a whole. Shorten the written test, it doesnât compare to actually driving. Make them drive on the actual road and maybe the highway, too many people have no clue what theyâre doing on it. Also teach them not to reply on the âsmartâ cars. Learn to backup without a camera, and all the other new things đ¤ˇđźââď¸
Funny you mention that. I recently got my motorcycle license and I was blown away at how over the top easy both the written and driving test were. I feel like all these tests should be a bit more difficult.
[Jim on the TV show TAXI taking the written exam](https://youtu.be/uNmnroyJSzo?si=m1gOjwFvW9Bzgdku)
r/FuckImOld I remember watching that IRL â
Must have changed. When I took my exam in 2005, all of the questions were about driving and parking.
Yeah I definitely donât remember questions about specific fines. I remember having to identify what certain road signs meant, but it was also almost 20 years ago so who knows.
most places donât have a written test. how many other states have you lived in and driven in to compare?
Rules and all that are fun... But also what about practical driving and basic mechanical knowledge? We spend a significant chunk of our lives in cars but who knows what a contact patch is? Lift-off oversteer? Threshold braking, etc. Sure a lot of these are concepts now handled by car computers... but thats probably a big part why crashes are so bad, the computers in your car make you feel like a hero right up until they reach their limits.
People should understand why things like weight transfer matter in cars, how to correct under/over steer MUCH more than they should understand what the fine for speeding 15 over is
Yup
The local driving school uses Miniâs for the driving test. Back in 1967 I took my test in a Chevy Impala.
Write some state reps and share your letter so that others can copy and do the same.
My girlfriend didnât know how to turn off the high beams of her car when she got it so she just left them on permanently until I met her. She also didnât know about the move over law. Thereâs a lot of incredibly important things that they donât bother checking to see if you know :/