california driving test appointment dmv change

#California driving test appointment dmv change drivers
#California driving test appointment dmv change driver
#California driving test appointment dmv change license

#California driving test appointment dmv change license

“He had received his last license in the mail, no questions asked.”īrandi Mitock was 15. “My daughter was killed in ’98 in a marked crosswalk by a 96-year-old man who suffered from the effects of strokes and dementia,” Mitock said in an email. One reader who agreed wholeheartedly was Mark Mitock, for whom this subject is tragically personal. “Only an actual driving test would be likely to determine fitness or rule out those who are incapable of driving safely,” Jahns said. Hemet resident Tim Jahns, 74, said he thinks the state should require driving tests rather than written tests that contain “a lot of minor or largely irrelevant questions.” Why can’t Californians drive? The DMV’s lousy handbook is partly to blame Perhaps a certification from the family doctor.”

#California driving test appointment dmv change drivers

He recommends “a system for verifying that older drivers do not have any physical or mental deficiencies that would impair their ability to drive safely.

#California driving test appointment dmv change driver

Gore said the tests are designed to be “fair to all” and to help determine whether “drivers have the knowledge needed to safely operate a vehicle.” All questions, she said, are taken from the California Driver Handbook.īut let me get back to Siciliano, who believes the written test is the wrong way to determine whether an aging driver is capable behind the wheel. I don’t know what that means, but it might be part of the problem. The DMV’s deputy director, Anita Gore, says the test is periodically evaluated and altered using a “linear-on-the-fly testing algorithm.” “Again, what does that prove about my ability to safely operate a motor vehicle?” “I missed a question about oil tankers and railroad crossings,” said Arthur Siciliano, 87, of West Hills. The animal question had a lot of readers barking. One example: What is the fine for abandoning an animal by the side of the road? Say what? I don’t know any senior who would do anything so stupid and heartless.” “Some of the questions were incredibly picky,” Bryant said, “and unrelated to anything important for senior drivers to remember. She flunked the test on her first try and passed on the second, but said none of the 25 questions had been on the practice exams. She said she’s been driving for 57 years, spent a Saturday studying the driver handbook, took five practice exams on a Sunday and thought she was ready. Now let me get back to test questions that irked so many readers, including Carolyn Bryant of Brea. But you’ll still have to go to a DMV office for the eye exam. You can find out whether those are options for you by going to the Senior Drivers website and beginning your license renewal process online.

I was told that in some instances, depending on driving records and other factors, you might be able to take the test online or qualify for something called the e-learning course, which is a roughly 45-minute driver’s ed and testing program. But a few readers told me they had been able to take the test online at home, so I asked the DMV what was up. When I wrote that at age 70 and older, renewing your license requires an in-person eye exam and knowledge test, that was mostly true. I’m going to get to both of those topics, but first some clarifications. And a lot of people said it would be more useful, past a certain age, to require driving, rather than written, tests. A lot of people complained about the test questions.

Two things stood out for me as I perused reader comments. But that’s somewhat misleading because they tend to drive fewer miles. I dug up statistics suggesting that older drivers, by percentage, have fewer accidents than those in their 20s and 30s. Many people argued that you should be judged on your driving record, not your age. My column explored the question of whether, as some insisted, this was a case of age discrimination. The requirement had actually been in place since 1978, but was temporarily lifted during the COVID-19 pandemic, making it possible to renew online with no hassles. 1 - that anyone 70 or older who wants to renew has to go to a DMV office for a knowledge test and an eye exam. I’d written about the requirement - as of Jan. They have opinions, suggestions and gripes they can’t wait to unload, and I’m still going through hundreds of responses to my column about driver’s license renewals for people 70 and older. When it comes to the California Department of Motor Vehicles and its policies and practices, people are not timid.