Colorado Driving Test

My 16 year old is one step closer to being a licensed driver.  The process started with an eye exam and written test when she turned 15.  After that we started driving lessons accumulating 50 hours of supervised drive time by me or my wife.  That drive time included 10 hours of night driving.  Finally she had three 2 hour lessons through an approved driving school.

After all that she was eligible to take her test through the driving school.  It is a supervised drive in your car or their car and they observe your driving.  

Immediate fail is running a red light or stop sign, striking an object/pedestrian or anything that could be construed as reckless driving.  Fortunately none of these occurred.  

The second criteria is three or fewer incidences of unsafe driving.  Not sure what all of these include, but she did have one infraction for going 31 mph in a 25 mph zone.

The final criteria is 20 or fewer performance points identified by the instructor.  My daughter was given feedback on multiple instances of harsh braking and wide turns.  She also mentioned that a point was docked for letting the steering wheel slide through your hand instead of holding it when completing a turn.  There were probably others that she did not fill me in on.  She ended up accumulating 13 points which still allowed her to pass the driving test.

Community Driving School charges $425 for 6 hours of behind-the-wheel training and driving skill test (1 attempt).  The state charges $18.52 for a learners permit and $33 for a license.  Now the big question, how much will our insurance go up when adding a teen driver.

Colorado law states that from 16 to 16.5 years of age, no passengers other than family.  From 16.5 to 17 years of age, one passenger allowed.