Minnesota Graduated Driver Licensing
The graduated driver's license law (GDL) became effective on January 1, 1999. It compliments the existing driver's license program by introducing a provisional license stage for young drivers.
This multi-tiered program, designed to ease young novice drivers into the driving environment, provides for additional parental/legal guardian involvement. It also emphasizes the importance of a good driving record
A few GDL facts:
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- The Graduated Driver's License law provides for three phases of licensing for persons under 18 years of age: Phase I-Instruction Permit Phase II-Provisional License Phase III-Full License
- The law increases the parent's/legal guardian's involvement in their teen's driving experience.
- A person who fails the driving test four times must complete a minimum of six hours of behind-the-wheel instruction with a licensed instructor before taking the road test again. (A valid instruction permit is required.)
- An applicant who is age 18 and who has not been previously licensed, must hold an instruction permit for six months before taking a road test. Applicants who are 19 or older must hold an instruction permit for three months before taking a road test.
- There is a $3.50 credit toward the fee for a full license for a provisional license holder who has no violations on his/her driving record.
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The graduated driver's license law (GDL) compliments the existing driver's license program by introducing a provisional license stage for young drivers. It is a multi-tiered program, designed to ease young novice drivers into the driving environment.
The Graduated Driver's License law provides for three phases of licensing for persons under 18 years of age.(See below.)
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- A person who fails the driving test four times must complete a minimum of six hours of behind-the-wheel instruction with a licensed instructor before taking the road test again. (A valid instruction permit is required.)
- An applicant who is age 18 and who has not been previously licensed, must hold an instruction permit for six months before taking a road test. Applicants who are 19 or older must hold an instruction permit for three months before taking a road test
- There is a $3.50 credit toward the fee for a full license for a provisional license holder who has no violations on his/her driving record.
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Phase I - Instruction Permit
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Applicant Qualifications
- Must be at least 15 years of age.
- Must have completed 30 hours of classroom instruction and be enrolled in behind-the-wheel instruction.
- Must pass vision and written tests, complete application, and pay the required fee.
- Parent or legal guardian's signature and certification required on application.
Conditions
- Permit holder may drive under the supervision of a certified driving instructor, parent or guardian, or other licensed driver 21 years of age or older.
- Every occupant must wear a properly fastened seat belt or use a properly fastened child restraint system.
- You may not use or talk on a cell phone while driving, with or without a hands-free cell phone device.
- The permit is valid for two years and may be renewed.
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Phase II - Provisional License
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Applicant Qualifications
- Must be at least 16 years of age.
- Must have completed driver education.
- Must have held an instruction permit for six months with no convictions for moving violations or convictions for alcohol/controlled substance violations. If all or part of your six months of driving experience was in a state other than Minnesota, please present a certified driving record from that state. Reference Minnesota Statutes 169A.20, 169A.54 , 169A.33 , 169A.54, 169A.35, 169A.50 169A.51 and 52 and 169.53
- Must pass the road test, complete application, and pay required fee.
- The person who approves the application also certifies that the applicant had driven under the supervision of a licensed driver at least 21 years of age for not less than 30 hours, at least ten of which were at night.
Conditions
- Every occupant must wear a properly fastened seat belt or use a properly fastened child restraint system.
- You may not use or talk on a cell phone while driving, with or without a hands-free device.
- A provisional license is valid for two years.
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Phase III - Full License
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Applicant Qualifications
- Must: be at least 18 years of age or must have held a provisional license for at least 12 consecutive months with no convictions for alcohol/controlled substance violations or crash-related moving violations, and with not more than one conviction for a moving violation that is not crash-related.
- Must complete application and pay required fee.
- If under 18, the person who approves the application also certifies that the applicant has driven under the supervision of a licensed driver at least 21 years of age for not less than ten hours on the provisional license.
- Expires on 21st birthday. There is a $3.50 credit toward the fee for this license if the applicant has no violations on record.
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What is Minnesota Graduated Driver Licensing?
What is Minnesota GDL? Minnesota Graduated Driver Licensing is a system for phasing in on-road driving, allowing beginners to get their initial experience under conditions that involve lower risk and introducing them in stages to more complex driving situations.
Take some time to watch the Young Drivers video here. See if your teen likes this video. If they do, they will love our Minnesota graduated driver licensing program.
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- We begin with combining the in-class with the behind-the-wheel training process concurrent with one another.
- Then we add more hours behind-the-wheel to give the new drivers an opportunity to experience all four seasons and weather conditions under a controlled risk factor.
- We take away the 6 hour driver training clock and base achievement and graduation on performance, skill and experience.
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Remember when we were trying to teach our new teenagers as if we were traveling on a two-lane dirt road at 35 MPH, when our average traveled speed in Minnesota exceeds 55 MPH on a six-lane highway? Most families had a single vehicle in the fifties and sixties, and then to two vehicles in the seventies. The days of driving on weekends with mom and dad for the first year or two is over. In today’s hectic schedules, we are not allowing ourselves time to protect our Minnesota teens and teach them to drive as we should be. Parents need to realize that as the times change we must keep pace with that change.
Our driving generation, 35 to 50 years old, will be remembered as the worse driving generation in the history of the vehicle. We average 40,000 fatalities per year. Our generation needs to change the way we think and teach Minnesota graduated driver licensing.
If you look closely, you'll realize we spend about 12 years on basic education, reading writing, math, history and physical education…and only 6 hours behind the wheel training in a vehicle.
We need to be remembered as the generation that created the best Minnesota drivers in history. The generation that did something about the way we think and teach driver training. We need help from every mom and dad to complete this goal. We need to invest our time in our teenagers and take the time needed to teach our children to drive better.
This could mean as much as 1 or two years of guidance. And to do this you will need the very best Minnesota curriculum and training videos available. You will need to allow Minnesota graduated driver licensing to become part of your families dinner conversation and sharing experiences on new intersections, changes on the interstate on ramps or maybe a lost of a fellow student friend.
Minnesota Driver education and training is no longer a project to hire out to the local driving school. Parents need to get involved and stay involved for at least two or three years. Placing driving restrictions and hours on when a new driver is allowed to drive and with whom. This, in essence, is Minnesota Graduated Driver Licensing.
