Texas DPS written test: adult drivers ed satisfies two of the six parts the law requires

What is on the Texas DPS written test?

Highway signs, Texas traffic laws, bicyclists and distracted driving, with a vision test and a driving test alongside. §521.161(b) lists it. The examination must include a test of the applicant’s:

• vision;
• ability to identify and understand highway signs in English that regulate, warn, or direct traffic;
• knowledge of the traffic laws of this state;
• knowledge of motorists’ rights and responsibilities in relation to bicyclists; and
• knowledge of the effect of using a wireless communication device, or other distraction, on safe operation of a vehicle;
• plus a demonstration of the ability to actually drive.

Bicyclists and distracted driving surprise people. Both are named in the statute itself, and both are taught in the course for that reason.

Does adult drivers ed include the written test?

The course satisfies the highway sign and traffic law portions of the DPS knowledge exam, and only those portions. §521.167 sets this out:

“A person who has completed and passed a driver education course approved by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation under Section 1001.1015, Education Code, is not required to take the highway sign and traffic law parts of the examination required under Section 521.161 if those parts have been successfully completed as determined by a licensed driver education instructor.”

— Tex. Transp. Code §521.167

Vision is still tested at the office, and the driving skills test still happens. The course counts only once a licensed driver education instructor determines that you passed those portions, which is what the examination at the end of the course is for.

Can I take the Texas written test online?

Not as a standalone DPS test for a first license. The online route is an approved course, and you still sit an exam, the course’s own, at home.

The course ends with a 40-question examination in two parts, 20 on highway signs and 20 on traffic laws, and you need 70% on each. You take it at home, after six hours of the material, with 3 attempts rather than a single cold sitting at a counter.

I’m 25 or older. Should I take the course for the written test?

That depends on you, because at 25 and over the course is optional. For first-time applicants over 25, DPS calls driver education “highly recommended.” We set out both sides in the page for drivers 25 and over.

Common questions