Georgia Teen Driving Guide: 2024-2025

40-Hour Parent/Teen Driving Guide Overview

• The DDS provides a 40-hour Parent/Teen Driving Guide for 2024-2025.
• The guide aims to equip teens with essential tools for safer driving and assists in fulfilling Georgia's teen driver education requirements.

Georgia's Digital Driver's License and ID

• Georgia offers a Digital Driver's License and ID.
• It is accepted at select TSA Terminals.
• It's available on Apple Wallet and Google Wallet.

Guide Contents and Governor's Message

• The guide includes customer service center details, commissioner messages, acknowledgments, and session-specific content.
• Governor Kemp highlights Georgia's economic opportunities, infrastructure, and the importance of safe driving. He encourages Georgians to use the driving guide for improving understanding of traffic laws.

DDS Customer Service Centers

• Lists various DDS Customer Service Centers across Georgia with addresses.
• DDS plans to add/relocate several centers to improve service.
• The best times to visit are midweek, with Tuesdays being the busiest.
• Scheduling road tests and submitting paperwork can be done online at dds.georgia.gov.

Commissioner's Message

• Spencer R. Moore emphasizes the importance of driver education and supervised experience.
• Georgia law requires teens under 18 to complete a DDS-approved driver training program.
• A Driving Experience Affidavit (DDS-7) is needed, confirming at least 40 hours of driving experience, including 6 at night.
• The DDS 2 GO mobile app can be downloaded for free to complete transactions and upgrade licenses.

DDS Mission, Core Values, and Title VI Policy

• DDS's mission is to provide secure driver and identity credentials with excellence and respect.
• Core values include trusted service, ethical actions, accountability, and excellence.
• DDS is committed to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ensuring nondiscrimination in all programs.

Deputy Commissioner's Message

• Ricky H. Rich highlights that driver education creates safer drivers.
• Motor vehicle crashes are preventable.
• Safety advice includes buckling up, slowing down, avoiding impaired driving, and eliminating distractions. The DDS 2 GO app is recommended.

Important Notices and Disclaimers

• The guide provides information from the Virginia Department of Education and disclaims liability for errors.
• It's intended for noncommercial, educational use only.
• Materials are protected by copyright and trademark laws.
• Unauthorized use is prohibited and may violate rights of DDS or other parties.

Parenting the Driving Experience

• Involvement can ensure a safe, skilled driving transition.
• In 2016, there were 188 roadway fatalities in Georgia for persons under 21 and 2,820 drivers ages 13-19 were killed in car crashes nationally.
• The Teenage & Adult Driver Responsibility Act (TADRA) was established to allow young drivers to gain experience. This includes 40 hours of supervised driving, of which at least six must be at night.

Introduction to TADRA and Licensing

• TADRA, enacted on July 1, 1997, established a graduated driver's license program for ages 15-18.
• Step One: Instructional Permit (Class CP) requires being 15, passing exams, and parental/guardian consent if under 18.
• Step Two: Provisional License (Class D) requires being 16, holding a Class CP for a year and a day, completing 40 hours of driving, and passing exams.

Real ID and Parental Involvement

• Since July 1, 2012, DDS requires additional documentation for Driver's Licenses and ID cards.
• Parents play a role in granting permission, providing driving experience, ensuring driver education, and setting limits.

Class D Provisional License Conditions

• Class D license holders cannot drive between 12:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m.
• Restrictions apply to passengers during the first year.

General Driving Tips

• When you drive, set a good example to model.
• Select driving environments that complement the lesson objectives and the novice driver's ability. Start slow.
• Have short, well-planned practice sessions.
• Emphasize driving with a large anticipation zone by looking at least 15-20 seconds ahead and commentary driving.

Vehicle Maintenance

• Adjusting the passenger sun visor can allow the instructor to see from the passengers perspective.
• Tires should be inflated to vehicle levels.
• Tread can be measured using the penny test.

Steering techniques

• Good posture ensures hazard view and control.
• Hand-to-hand steering is the best strategy for maintaing constant contact with the wheel and reduces excessive movement.

Airbags and Mirrors

• Drivers need to be 10 inches away from the steering wheel to reduce any injuries from airbags.
• Side mirrors need to be completely optimized to ensure the entire area around the car is visible which reduces accidents.

Weather Information and Adverse Conditions

• Driver inattention is a primary cause of crashes.
• Fatigue or drowsy driving limits your reaction time.
• Reduce speed during adverse weather.

Sessions 1 & 2: Getting Ready, Vehicle Basics

• Sessions 1 and 2 should be divided into four 30-minute periods.
• Check tire pressure, engine oil, radiator, and other fluid levels.
• Discuss how the proper seating position is essential for control of the vehicle. Head restraint to align with center of the back of the head.
• It includes checking for fluid leaks/broken glass before entering and adjusting the drivers seat, along with checking mirrors.
• After getting comfortable with the setup, get them to focus on braking and accelerating slowly and smoothly and make frequent stops.

Sessions 3-5: Moving, Stopping, Steering Reference Points

• 3-5 are focused on learning procedures for changing speed and direction, and should be split into six 30 minute sessions.
• Practice getting familiar with breaking the car at different speeds.
• Alignment tools like reference points need to be mastered, this allows the drive to determine lanes and distance.
• These sessions should be taken in a large parking lot.

Sessions 6 & 7: Backing

• 6-7 primarily deal with the movement of the car in reverse an require you to divide these sessions into six sections.
• Backing requires a lot of skill so being comfortable at normal slow speeds is essential, this stage makes you focus on it.
• It should be known that looking over the shoulder is important here so blind spots are accounted for.

Sessions 8-10: Turns and Visual Skill

• Should primairly focus on turns and lane positioning and can usually be done in four sessions.
• The driver must never focus on just one thing as the visual space and area should be wide and expansive.
• Turns can be easily improved by teaching right-of-way and understanding the visual targeting and lane control.

Sessions 31-40: Night Time Driving

• Is very dangerous and requires an entirely new skill set and should only be taught when the driver is completely competent.. Scan this QR code with your mobile device to view the video online.

Sessions 11-13: Intended Path and curve Control

• Session is heavily focused on search and path targeting and space management, visual skill,
• The SEE IT system is one of them, search, evaluate, and execute in time.

Sessions 14-16: Parking

• Emphasize the need to search before committing to a spot and monitor all four corners of the vehicle while positioning it inside the designated space.
• A good visual learner can often learn this quicker, the goal however is to make a good decision based on speed and location.

Sessions 19-21: Expressway and high speed highway use.

• Use of this kind of road is only permissible to competent drivers and usually will require 4 sessions spaced out appropriately.
• High speed driving needs new search targeting locations and quick lane evaluations and transitions, including blind spots and rear checks.

Sessions 22-24: Basic emergency maneuvers/ crash avoidance/ safety guidelines.

• Use parking lots for this particular skill as it can be very dangerous to practice.
• Straight line breaking to start, while maintaining complete and total control in the shortest and safest space and time.

Sessions 25-27: Breaking in a curve and on road emergency awareness.

• Similar to the previous lesson however to avoid under or over steering the wheel needs to be understood at a high sense,
• Road awareness of the environment with a high level of constant visual checking is important, don't rely on mirrors alone.

Sessions 28-30: Hydroplaning and Off road recovery.

• Hydroplaning happens on tires float on a water and requires a lot of speed or very little tread..
• Recovering on the off-road does not involve sudden breaking or reentering traffic, but regaining control slowly is a must.

Parent-Teen Driving Agreement

• Design an written agreement to reduce the risk of the parent or new test driver being negligent- that is, not behaving with ordinary care or regard to avoiding a foreseeable injury by using the unsupervised privileges or by not following the driving rules set forth.