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Prospective drivers under 18 years old will now be required to complete 30 hours of driver education courses before getting their permit.
DENVER — Prospective young drivers in Colorado will be required to spend more time learning about the rules of the road before they can get behind the wheel.
Starting in April 2026, drivers under the age of 18 will have to complete 30 hours of driver education before obtaining a learning permit. Drivers between 18 and 21 will have to complete a four-hour driver awareness program before getting their permit or license.
“Basically what the state of Colorado is saying is, we need more training, we need more education,” Steve Rohman, owner of Community Driving School, said.
Rohman said previous laws allowed drivers between 16 and 17 to get their permit without an official form of driver education. Supervised driving hours and holding a permit for at least one year were required before getting a license.
He said 18-year-olds were able to bypass classroom hours and supervised behind-the-wheel hours and could technically get their permit and license in the same day.
“I think from 16 to 18, you started to see some of the kids waiting to get their license, so they didn’t have to do some of the requirements because of the cost, because obviously there is a cost as well,” Rohman said.
The 30-hour course will dive deep into the rules of the road and the fundamentals of driving.
“Everything from your car registration to getting insurance all the way up to stop sign regulation, so it really covers a lot more information than what’s in the Colorado handbook,” Rohman said.
AAA regional director of public affairs Skyler McKinley said the new laws will have a positive effect on young-adult crash data.
“What we know is that Colorado crashes and fatalities were skyrocketing, that 2022 was the most deadly year on our roadways in recorded history,” McKinley said. “Folks who are 17 and 18, 19, and 20, they’re among the most dangerous drivers, in part because they were historically able to skip out on driver’s ed altogether.”
McKinley said he’s worked with Colorado legislators for years to push for a change in these standards.
“We’d looked at driver’s education as something we could do to improve driving in Colorado,” McKinley said. “By improving driving, we lower the crash rate, and that’s proven. And in lowering the crash rate, we save lives and save Coloradans money, at least with regard to what they’re paying and insurance.”
Drivers will have to pay for the 30-hour course, but McKinley said there are online state-certified courses for less than $100. Some are as little as $30.
“Of all the investments you could make in a new driver, investing in education is probably the most price wise and sensible one because you’re going to see the benefits of that investment almost immediately,” McKinley said.
He said in coming years, it’s possible driving schools and AAA will offer programming at a discounted rate.
“The goal is that everybody can go through driver’s ed, that it’s affordable, that it’s accessible, that it’s fun and that it’s easy,” McKinley said.
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