Getting a WA driver’s license is about to get a lot harder

It’s close to back-to-school time, and for many kids that means it’s time for driver’s ed. But there are major changes coming to the requirements for new drivers and license applicants over the next few months.

The state is not only adding a new testing section to driver’s training. It is requiring driver’s ed for older applicants.

WA driver’s license applicants must pass new work zone safety course

Starting Nov. 1, any first-time driver’s license applicants under 25 must complete the new work zone and emergency responder training course. It’s an hour-long course that will launch Sept. 1. It will go over zipper merging, how to negotiate work zones, our move-over laws, and other safety measures.

“It’s free, and it’s online,” Nathan Olson, communications and outreach director for the Washington State Department of Licensing, said. “It’s mobile-friendly, and it’s desktop-friendly, so you can do it on your home computer, or you can do it on your phone if you want to.”

There will be a test to take right after. You must pass to get your license. This is a stand-alone course for now, but it will eventually be rolled into driver’s ed training.

Young drivers who are moving here and want a Washington driver’s license will also have to take this work zone and first responders course.

“If you have a valid license from another state and you want to get a license in this state, and you’re between 16 and 24, you’re going to have to take that course as well,” Olson said.

So there will be no simple transition for young license holders from other states.

No more skipping driver’s ed at 18

Washington is also expanding the age requirements for taking driver’s ed.

Right now, if you’re 18, you only need to pass the written and driving tests. But starting in January, 18-year-olds will have to take a driver’s education class too.

“Anyone who’s 15, 16, 17, or 18 now and getting their first license is going to have to take a driver training course,” Olson said. “You can’t just wait until 18 and then not take a driver training course and get your first license. You actually, at 18, have to take a driver training course.”

That age will go up a year every year until 2030. By 2030, anyone under 22 years old will be required to take driver’s ed.

“One of the things that we found in our research was that, for those who were 18 to 20 years old and had not taken driver training, that group had an 80% higher rate of involvement in accidents than those who had driver training,” Olson said. “The driver training courses work really well.”

But they are also really expensive. Those courses can run between $500 and $800. The state is looking at ways to lower those costs for low-income applicants with a voucher system. That is still being worked out.

Two tickets and you’re back in class

These changes were directed by the legislature with one goal in mind: safety.

“We believe it’s going to improve driving with fewer accidents, fewer fatalities, more safety on the road,” Olson said.

The state is also creating a new mandatory safe driving class for Washington drivers between 18 and 24 years old with two moving violations on their record. Starting Jan. 1, those drivers will need to take this course or risk losing their license.

Chris Sullivan is a traffic reporter for KIRO Newsradio. Read more of his stories here. Follow KIRO Newsradio traffic on X.

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