If you have a teen whose 14th birthday is approaching or they recently turned 14, then you will be happy to know that certain schools across the state of Iowa will be offering your teen the opportunity to complete their driving knowledge test at the school they are currently attending. According to the Des Moines Register, the Iowa Department of Transportation is partnering with certain schools to help parents “Skip the Trip” to their local Iowa DOT or county treasurer’s office, allowing your teen to complete this portion of their learner’s permit test without having to make an extra trip.
The Iowa DOT acknowledges that many parents in the past would have to take time off of work or out of their daily schedules just to take their teen to their scheduled appointment to complete the test. However, they now expect that this new change “will save parents time and the expense of potentially making repeat trips” to a DOT location in the event their teen doesn’t pass the first time around. Aside from that, Melissa Spiegel, who is Director of the Iowa Department of Motor Vehicle Division, also anticipates that this adjustment to how the test is administered will help reduce the congestion DOT service centers currently experience.
In order for your teen to qualify to take their driving knowledge test at school as opposed to at a DOT service center, they must:
- Be enrolled with a participating school or agency.
- Be 14 years of age or older.
- Cannot currently hold an Iowa instruction permit.
The news outlet highlighted that the schools that have been chosen to participate in the “Skip the Trip” program will have the flexibility to administer the test at times that are most convenient for their students. A counselor working in one school district that participated in a pilot program said that “testing at school provides a more familiar and comfortable test environment for students, and it’s much easier for the kids to schedule the tests here at school rather than needing to go to a driver’s license center.”
What happens once a student completes the test?
Once a student completes the knowledge portion of the test, they will receive verification via email that must be brought to the driver’s license service center in their area with other required documentation that proves their identity. So, rather than a parent having to bring their child in at a set time to complete their learner’s permit test, they now have the opportunity to bring the verification to their local driver’s license service center when it is most convenient for them to do so.
Now, if your teen’s school is not participating with the “Skip the Trip” program, you may want to bring it to their attention and have them contact the department of transportation at skipthetrip.support@iowadot.us.
When a teen is first learning how to drive, it can be an exciting yet scary time for everyone. That is why the Iowa car accident lawyers here at Eells & Tronvold Law Offices, P.L.C. encourage you to be patient with your teen and help them learn by setting the right kind of examples when you are driving. Now, if you and your teen were recently involved in a wreck in Iowa, we encourage you to contact our office at your earliest convenience so that we can review with you what you what your damages might be worth.
You can reach Eells & Tronvold Law Offices, P.L.C. at:
1921 51st Street NE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52402
Phone: (319) 393-1020
Fax: (319) 393-4000
Eells & Tronvold Law Offices, PLC 
