I had been driving back in India and I absolutely love it and long drive is therapeutic for me. But after moving to US, I lost touch of steering wheel. I live in downtown and public transport is very convenient and reliable. So I never felt the need of owning a car. Also, rules here are very different and US is very strict about following driving rules. Not following rules is a complete no - no unless you are up for stringent punishments ranging from paying hefty fines to getting your license suspended for lifetime.
US has different rules for driver's license for each state and some states allow you to drive if you possess other state's or country's driver's license. However, Washington state allows you to drive with other state's/country's license up to 1 year. So getting a driver's license is one of the most important items in the checklist for people who move here.
I kept holding off the driving test because I was busy settling down and getting used to the cold and rain. But I was determined to tick this item off my checklist as soon as summer arrives and I feel so proud to have done it yesterday. I took driving lessons from a driving school and they taught me techniques for each maneuver. Trust me once you know the technique, everything is a breeze and it's mostly about techniques with little bit of feel and flair.
This was warm-up. :-P. Let's come to the point.
In Washington, driving licensing office has authorized few driving schools to conduct test. I chose 911 driving school, Bellevue for the same.
There are 3 steps in getting a driver's license in Washington state:
US has different rules for driver's license for each state and some states allow you to drive if you possess other state's or country's driver's license. However, Washington state allows you to drive with other state's/country's license up to 1 year. So getting a driver's license is one of the most important items in the checklist for people who move here.
I kept holding off the driving test because I was busy settling down and getting used to the cold and rain. But I was determined to tick this item off my checklist as soon as summer arrives and I feel so proud to have done it yesterday. I took driving lessons from a driving school and they taught me techniques for each maneuver. Trust me once you know the technique, everything is a breeze and it's mostly about techniques with little bit of feel and flair.
This was warm-up. :-P. Let's come to the point.
In Washington, driving licensing office has authorized few driving schools to conduct test. I chose 911 driving school, Bellevue for the same.
There are 3 steps in getting a driver's license in Washington state:
- Get the instruction Permit which will be valid for 1 year. For this, you will have to pass the knowledge test which is a pen paper based test which tests if you are aware of the driving rules in Washington.
Before taking the test, I practiced some questions here. I went to driving school on one weekend morning and told them that I want to apply for driver's license. They asked me to pay the fees of 29.95$ for the knowledge test and take the test. I took the test immediately and I failed in the first attempt. But driving school told me that I can attempt 3 times and if I fail in all 3 attempts, I will have to pay the fees again. I attempted the test again after 15 minutes and I passed it this time. I was just more careful this time :-P
Once, you clear the test, you can head to driving licensing office for getting instruction permit. But if you already hold a valid driver's license of other county or state, then you don't need instruction permit. Still, you will have to clear knowledge test as the first step. - Pass the driving test
- Hand Signals - Know how to give handle signal for stopping, left turn and right turn
- Ability to Stop suddenly- Examiner will ask you to put your foot on the gas pedal and then ask you to apply brake.
- STOP sign- Make sure that you don't miss stopping on STOP sign at the intersection. Any failure to do so will ensure that you failed the test. So be focussed and look for signs on your right hand side.
There are 2 types of STOP sign. STOP and ALL-WAY STOP.
STOP- Stop before the solid white line. After taking 180 degree view, proceed forward. If road is not clearly visible, move forward a little and again look at both ways of traffic and if everything is clear, go ahead.
ALL-WAY STOP means that traffic from all the direction is stopped and the car which arrives at the intersection first has the right of way. If two vehicle reaches the intersection simultaneously, then the vehicle on the right side of the road has the right of way. - Lane change/Left/Right Turns (Make sure to SMOG otherwise you will loose points)
SMOG- Signal Mirror Over your Shoulder Go - Speed Limit - Ensure to check speed limit on the road you are driving on.
Generally, driving test is conducted in neighborhood where speed limit is 30-35 Miles/hour. Ensure you are neither below the limit or above the limit. - Parallel Parking: You will be asked to park your car parallel to the road behind a parked car. So here is the technique for it.
1) Keep moving forward with steering in straight direction maintaining 2-3 feet distance from the parked car until your back seat is aligned with the rear bumper of the car. Put your foot on the brake and put the car in reverse gear.
2) Turn the steering wheel completely in the right directly (2 turns from the straight position) and, SMOG and keep moving back until you are at 45 degree angle with the parked car. Keep looking back to ensure there is no car coming from behind. Ensure to stop if you see any car coming from behind.
3) Here is the mirror technique :-P
Position your front right mirror so that you are able to see the curb and more of your car. For this, you will have to tilt your front right mirror to the downside. Normally your front mirror will be positioned in a way that you car will be partially visible to you; 2nd door handle only will be visible to be more precise.
4) Straighten your steering and keep moving backward until your car makes V shape with the curb.
5) Now turn the steering completely to the left and keep moving backward until the car is parallel to the curb.
6) Check how close you are to the front car and adjust accordingly and last but not the least put the car in parking gear. - Backing Around the corner - Ah! the toughest one!! Examiner will ask you to back around a corner. You should back around a corner being within 18 inches of the curb. Ensure to make 2-3 stops to do 360 degree safety checks while backing up.
Here are the steps:
1) Mirror Trick: Adjust you front right mirror to ensure that the curb around the corner is clearly visible
2) Turn on right signal, put the car in reverse gear and start backing up looking back. Stop little before reaching corner and do 360 degree safety check to ensure there is no car coming from behind.
3) Start turning the steering to the right as you reach corner. Once you are inline with the corner, make 2nd stop and do 360 degree safety check again as this time road will be more visible.
4) Keep backing up turning the steering to the right based on car movement. Once you have crossed the corner and car is straight, make your 3rd stop. Do safety check again and keep backing up until car is parallel to the curb which will require turning the steering to the left and then bringing it back to the straight.
In case, you have crossed the corner but car is not parallel to the curb, don't panic. Move forward, take right turn if required and then back up again. - Uphill Parking- Examiner will ask you to park on the side of the road on uphill
SMOG on the right side, pull the car to the right for stopping ensure you are are parallel to the curb. Put the car in parking mode, hand brake on and steering wheel on the completely left side. This is called UP-UP-AWAY mode, which means your your front wheel is away from the curb while car is parked. - Downhill Parking- This is same as uphill parking except that steering wheel will be turned to completely to the right side.
- Merge into the traffic from the parking- SMOG on the left side and move forward when it is safe to do so.
3. Head to Department of Licensing for getting DL
Congratulations!! You have cleared the test!! Head to DOL with the documents. You will get a token. Once your turn comes, present all the documents like photo id proof and address proof. Get the picture clicked and you are done!! Your DL will come mailed to your address within 7 working days.
Checkout some driving test videos - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qw4-0GfcFYA
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Il5KdPDJG98
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRgeq8xrqTg
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXl_Ni-mTn8
All the Best and please let me know your comments.
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