Key Skills Driving School
Key Skills Driving School
Serving all Valley Locations… Anthem, Queen Creek, Apache Junction, Phoenix, Avondale, Surprise and everything in between
Driving is a skill—really, a set of skills. Like all skills, it requires both training and practice. You have to be aware of what’s going on around you—situational awareness is the fancy term—and you need to coordinate your senses and your body to respond to what happens on the road—sometimes in a split second.
Obtaining your driver’s license in Arizona is not difficult, but it will require you to practice and take steps to demonstrate you’re safe on the roads. You may want to work with a professional driving school in Chandler, Phoenix, or Tempe. They can help you develop good driving habits which serve you for a lifetime.
Arizona’s graduated licensing system for drivers under 18 is designed to make sure that inexperienced young drivers develop into safe drivers, while also keeping other drivers safe. Driving well requires experience, and experience takes time.
The instruction permit is available to you once you turn 15 years and 6 months old. You will have to pass a written and vision test, as well as apply along with a parent or guardian. While you are driving with your permit, you must have a licensed driver who is at least 21 years old in the front passenger seat.
You must hold the permit for at least six months. Prepare for the written test by studying the manual or taking a driver’s education course—or both. The Department of Transportation also provides several practice tests for you.
The Class G License can be earned by teens at least 6 years old who have also held their permit for at least six months. You will either have to produce a training certificate from a licensed professional driving school or school-based program, or your parent/guardian will have to certify that you have had at least 30 hours of supervised practice driving—including 10 hours at night.
Possessing the certificate of completion normally means you won’t have to take the road test. The Motor Vehicle Department, however, can require up to 20% of the applicants with certificates to take the road test—this ensures that professional driving schools meet the state’s standards. The MVD selects these people randomly.
On a Class G license, you may not have more than one passenger under 18 with you. If the passengers are your siblings, or if a licensed parent/guardian is in the front passenger seat, then you may have more than one passenger under 18.
Additionally, during the first six months of holding the Class G license, you may not drive between midnight and 5 am unless either a parent/guardian is with you or if you are driving for very specific reasons, including family emergencies.
If you keep a clean licensed for your first six months, the restrictions may be lifted until you are eligible to apply for the Class D license when you turn 18.
Your parent or guardian must sign your application for an instruction permit or Class G license if you are under 18. The adult is responsible for any negligence on your part or willful misconduct you engage in while you are driving.
Arizona specifies who must sign:
The Class D license is open to you when you turn 18. You will receive a special “Under 21” license in vertical format, which also notes the date you will turn 21. You may, of course, continue to use your Class G license.
Your Class D license does not expire until you turn 65. You must update the photo and vision tests every twelve years, however.
Teens should have a lot of practice driving before they drive on their own. Most people would think that the 30 hours required by the state is not enough supervised time to ensure that a teen is a safe driver. Teens should practice with their parents/guardians, of course, because that can be good bonding time. And parents of course have been driving for several decades—they have plenty of driving experience.
Just because you can do something well, however, does not mean that you can teach it well. In addition, your good driving habits are now so ingrained that you’re not aware of them—you won’t be able to pass them on. Finally, every adult driver has shortcuts to driving. They may be safe because of experience, but they are not safe when used by a new driver.
You may, for example, drive to the center on curves when you can see ahead. This makes the curves easier, but involves crossing the line—new drivers shouldn’t do that. You may also think that driving the speed of the traffic is the safest speed, and thus go 82 on I-10 south to Tucson, but your teen driver should not be driving at those speeds.
Your driving certified trainer in the Phoenix area will make sure that you have a solid foundation in the proper driving skills. Your certified trainer will make sure you can navigate your way around Chandler, Ahwatukee, and Mesa. Many driving certified trainers will pick you up or drop you off as part of the lesson package.
Driving instruction is not just for teens. Many adults take behind-the-wheel lessons for a variety of reasons.
Some adults may not have learned to drive as a teen, or were not taught well—and now are nervous and want to drive better. Some may want to brush-up on their skills, or may find that they can get a reduction in their insurance premium with additional driving lessons.
Senior citizens may benefit from driving instruction also—as a way to help preserve their independence. Sensitive driving certified trainers will help people adapt their driving to the natural effects of aging—and will help keep you behind the wheel.
Everyone wants to get to their destinations safely. We all depend on the other people on the road to drive safely, and we owe it to them also to be safe drivers. Driver education for drivers around Chandler, Scottsdale, or Gilbert makes sure all the roads in the Valley of the Sun are safe.
As you gain your freedom and independence behind the wheel, remember to be safe. Focus on the task at hand, and you will go places!