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Colorado
Graduated Driver License (GDL) FAQ
Laws for Drivers under Age 18
When can a teen get a learner's permit?
- Minimum age 15, if enrolled in a state-approved driver education program.
- Minimum age 15 ½ after successfully completing a 4-hour driver awareness course.
- Minimum age 16 if none of the above.
- All new drivers under age 18 require a parent/legal guardian's signed affidavit to obtain a
learner's permit.
What does a teen under 18 with a learner's permit need to do before applying
for a driver's license?
- Hold a learner's permit for at least one year.
- 50 logged hours of driving time with a responsible, licensed adult prior to obtaining a license. 10 of those supervised hours must be nighttime driving.
- A teen under age 16 with a learner's permit may not drive with anyone except their driving instructor, parent, or legal guardian.
- Teens age 16 and older with learners' permits may drive with any licensed driver 21 years of age and older.
- No cell phones while driving.
What rules apply to licensed drivers under age 18?
- No passengers under age 21 until the driver holds a valid driver's license for at least six months (siblings and passengers with medical emergencies excepted).
- No more than one passenger under age 21 until the driver holds a valid driver's license for at least one year (siblings and passengers with medical emergencies excepted).
- No more than one passenger in the front seat of a vehicle driven by a person under age 18, and the number of passengers in the back seat must not exceed the number of seat belts. All passengers with drivers under seventeen must wear seatbelts.
- No driving between midnight and 5 a.m. until the driver holds a valid driver's license for at least one year, unless accompanied by a parent/legal guardian.
Exceptions:
- Driving to a school or school-authorized activity and the school does not provide transportation (signed statement from school required).
- Driving to/from work (signed statement from employer required).
- Medical emergency
- Driver is an emancipated minor
- No drinking and driving
- Obey all traffic Laws
- Carry proof of insurance
Graduated Licensing
"What's New?"
Governor Bill Owens and Colorado Legislators have just added important features to Colorado's graduated licensing laws by limiting the number of young passengers a new teen driver may carry, having a curfew through the first year of a new driver's license, and prohibiting cell phone use while driving with a learner's permit. Each of these factors limits dangerous situations and distractions, allowing new teen drivers to focus on the task at hand: Driving safely between point A and point B. The new laws took effect July 2005.
Background
Graduated Drivers Licensing (GDL) laws are designed to give young, novice drivers more experience behind the wheel and limit driving in high-risk situations while they are in the learning stages. States began enacting GDL laws in the 1990s. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, effective GDL laws require a learner's permit stage of at least six months with 30-50 hours of supervised driving, and an intermediate stage with limits on night driving and passenger restrictions.
Colorado's first parts of graduated driver's licensing went into effect July 1, 1999. The law required teens to drive supervised a minimum of six months with their instructional permits, log 50 hours of driving time with parents or driving instructors (including 10 nighttime hours), no driving for drivers under age 17 between midnight and 5 a.m., and young licensed drivers had to limit passengers to the number of seatbelts in the car.
In 2004, Colorado strengthened the law by raising the minimum learner's permit age to 16 unless a driver takes a drivers education course at age 15, or passes 4-hour driver awareness course at 15 years 6 months. The new law also lengthened the permit period to 12 months.
Teen driving statistics
- 96 16-20 year-olds died on Colorado roadways in 2004; Of those, 44 were 16-17 years old. 1
- In 2004, 65.6% of Colorado teens killed in car crashes did not wear seat belts. 1
- In 2004, nearly 80% of teen passengers who died in car crashes were riding with
teen drivers. 1
- As of December 31, 2004, there were 218,581 licensed teen drivers ages 16-20 in Colorado. Teen drivers represent nearly seven percent of the licensed drivers in Colorado. 1
- 16 year-olds have higher crash rates than drivers of any other age, and are three times more likely to die in motor vehicle crashes than other drivers. 2
- A study released by the National Institute of Health in 2005 found that the part of the brain that controls risk-taking and impulsive behavior is not fully developed until age 25.
- Graduated licensing laws around the country appear to be making a difference. The overall number of 16-year-old drivers fell from 1,084 in 1993 to 938 in 2003 despite an 18% increase in the 16-year-old population. 3
1 Colorado Dept. of Transportation 2 U.S. Dept. of Transportation 3 The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
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