Earlier this month, Georgia reinstated a road test requirement for drivers looking to get their licenses during the coronavirus pandemic.
Testing started back up this week but with a few modifications to maintain social distance.
Channel 2′s Tom Regan visited a testing location in Forsyth County, where he spoke with a teen who came back to take the test.
“It was easier than I thought it would be,” said Ella Zimmerman, 16.
Zimmerman got her driver’s license online last month after Georgia temporarily suspended the required road test. But the road tests are back on after Kemp clarified the order earlier this month.
Those who got a license without the test now have to come back and take it - with at least one major change. Drivers will take the test in the parking lot at the courses rather than out on the road.
The modified road test is also touchless. Examiners give driving commands from outside the car, like instructions to back up, turn and parallel park.
Kyia Mayl, 20, also got her license online and came back to take the road test Tuesday. She understands the virus concerns over examiners riding with a student out on the road.
But she also think it’s a critical part of the driving test.
“It may be easier to test in the parking lot, but it’s not going to be easier to drive on the road, if they’re not going to be driving with other people," Mayl said.
Thousands of drivers took advantage of the suspension. Anyone who skipped the test now has until the end of September to schedule an appointment and pass it.
You can download and read the governor’s executive order on the road tests here.
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