The sad state of driver training and knowledge is a constant source of frustration and dismay for many safe streets advocates. It seems like the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will give a license to just about anyone, and it’s become so easy to pass the tests that they don’t really provide any type of substantive education — or at least it appears that way judging from all the terrible driving we see every day. I can’t remember the last time I had good news to share on this front, so I’m excited to relay what feels like a little nugget of progress.
“We’ve had customers take the test 10 or more times per day, indicating they are not learning the information but hoping to pass by chance.”
— Oregon DMV
Starting October 1st, a change from the Oregon DMV should result in better educated drivers. Currently, folks applying for a license can take the knowledge test as many times as they want to in one day. This was new to me before I learned about it from a DMV email this morning which read, “We’ve had customers take the test 10 or more times per day, indicating they are not learning the information but hoping to pass by chance.” Yikes!
I reached out to ODOT Public Information Officer Chris Crabb to learn more. She said the change in guidance from unlimited testing to just two per day, which is now standardized statewide, was done to improve road safety. “The purpose of the knowledge test is to ensure the new driver knows the rules of the road and has some basic safe driving information,” Crabb shared with BikePortland. “By limiting the testing to twice a day, we are encouraging people to take the test seriously.”
Crabb added that not only does the DMV think the test will improve comprehension and encourage more study of the Oregon Driver Manual, but it will also free up DMV staff time. “Our counter staff spend a lot of time with individuals who continually retake the test, and that’s especially true for Portland offices. Reducing the testing will allow them to help more people in line.”
So here’s to ODOT acknowledging the connection between DMV testing and road safety! I hope the next steps are to talk more about what’s on the test, how often people are required to take it, and so on.
Thanks for reading.
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I would love to see the data about how often this multiple tests a day occurs. Jonathan, any chance they shared that?
They didn’t. But funny you mention this because I just completed a public records request for the pass/fail rate of all driver knowledge tests for the past 2 years.
Would you be able to post the email from the DMV that said people are taking the test up to 10 times a day?
Sure. Here’s the email. https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/ORDOT/bulletins/3f3d23e
Thank you for posting the email.
I did not know that there was a difference in the amount of times you could take the test depending on if you went to DMV to use their computer vs doing online offsite
Im confused. Local Oregon DMVs only allow once a day.
Language barriers maybe?
I’m sure they make accommodations for non-English speakers and people with learning disabilities.
That being said, you need to be able to comprehend what “road closed” means.
They didn’t for my kid. And she’s good at advocating for herself.
I am fairly certain they offer it in multiple languages. At any rate, being able to understand enough English to know what “No Turn on Red” or freeway exit signs mean is probably a reasonable expectation for someone who is going to get behind the wheel.
They don’t, from my understanding, but you can bring an interpreter with you. I was surprised at this because you’d think they’d have multiple languages or they’d hire interpreters that you could schedule a time with.
No there are language changes at DMV. I know when my son took his drivers test (1 yr ago), the kid before him wasn’t marked down for 2 violations because “he didnt understand the english language direction from the test provider”. The provider said it OUT LOUD.
I spent the summer working on an ODOT project and it has been a radicalizing experience for me.
The criteria should be 1 written test per day, behind the wheel testing every 10 years (more testing when you are older), and mandatory traffic school if you can’t pass either on your 3rd try. The tests also need to be harder, prohibit driver assists and cameras, and include parallel parking.
Driving is a privilege. A safe work place and life is a right.
Can confirm, based on driver behavior.
Teating my driver’s test like a DEI training slideshow at work I just have to click through
The new limit is twice a day?
Fuck that; the limit should be one attempt per month and three per year. The test is not hard but physics is unforgiving.
I totally misunderstood the headline idea and repeated references to limiting testing as a good thing. I thought we should have more testing, more frequent and better testing, not less. Oh! You mean limiting same-day retakes? Ah. Yes. One retry per day sounds reasonable.
Jonathan, thanks for reporting on this.
“The purpose of the knowledge test is to ensure the new driver knows the rules of the road and has some basic safe driving information,” Crabb told BikePortland.
I’m 100% in favor of this. I think the U.S. needs more comprehensive driver education, which should include not only classroom (or online) training but also demonstrated skills on the road. From our own experience traveling in Portugal last year and the UK the year before, my wife and I noticed that drivers seemed more responsible. That included truck (lorry) drivers, which I pay close attention to as the son of a trucker.
I’ve come to intensely dislike driving, but as an older driver I want to put in a plug for AARP’s Smart Driver program. My wife and I took the course earlier this year in Beaverton. We chose the classroom option instead of the online version: https://www.aarpdriversafety.org
Hey, just to give an alternate perspective on why someone might need multiple tests… My daughter has dyslexia and that test was particularly hard for her because it was in a format she’d never used before. She only needed to take it twice to pass, but being able to take it a second time right then and there was really important for her. If someone has English as a second language, or a reading disability, being able to retake the test immediately without needing to make another appointment (and then arrange transportation/get off work/etc) is important. It doesn’t mean the person doesn’t understand the rules of the road and that they aren’t safe and careful drivers.
That someone has dyslexia could conceivably be the only reason for more than two tests! Not knowing English should be the the top reason for not getting a driver’s license in an English speaking country. So that no one accuses me of being xenophobic, let me aay English is not my first language either.
I hope they reduce it to one test a day. Portland has the worst kind of drivers in the country. When I moved to Portland 10 years back, the test had a question about a man on a horse raising his hand and what does it mean. Talk of relevance
I’ll echo calls for even more restrictive testing and more difficult tests, the important one being the actual driving skills test. The current state of affairs – pass these tests once when young and renew ad infinitum – does little for a driving public’s continuing education. The more we can impart to the public that driving is a privilege laden with responsibility, instead of a God-given right, the more it might actually be treated as such, and the safer our roads become.
Should be no more than twice a month.
I find this interesting because I remember when I took mine about 20 years ago and you could only take it once every two days. Not multiple times a day. I had to take it a couple times, so did not get my permit right away. Wild to me that you can sit there and do it more than once or twice. The only reason they’d pass by that point is the questions are repeated and now you know the answers from the previous times. That teaches nothing.
What we need is fewer people driving and a much higher level of knowledge and skill. That isn’t achievable without alternatives we don’t have.
This is false. DMV does not allow more than two tests per day (depending on the test) it is in OAR.
Thank you! The Oregon drivers manual says the limit is 2 times in a 24 hour period so I’m not sure where people are getting this idea that the testing is unlimited. I would like to see the email from the DMV that says “people take the test 10 times a day!”
It used to be once per day and if you failed 3 times you had to wait a month before testing again. That was over 30 years ago though. Don’t see why they would have changed that.
It is far, FAR too easy to get your drivers license in the US. I’m a proponent of how they do it in Germany- no matter who you are or where you’re from: First Aid course, Eye exam, registering with and completing a drivers school, where you’ll learn then pass both a theoretical and practical driving exam. After you pass all that, gather up your paperwork and go to their “DMV” and get your license.
Im not sure where the “people take the test 10 times a day!” comes from because the oregon dmv drivers manual says you can only take the test 2 times in a 24 hour period and I’m not 100% positive but I think you have to make an appt at the DMV to even take the knowledge test on their computers
Taking a test has very little to do with bad habits like speeding, reckless driving, running STOP signs etc.
Those are learned behaviors and need to be handled accordingly by law enforcement and the DMV. There is an enormous difference between a privilege and a Constitutional right.