PennDOT expands permit access for rural Pennsylvanians

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(The Center Square) - State officials are working to make it easier for high school students to get their learner’s permits.

The pilot program being launched at Williamson High School in Tioga will allow students to take the knowledge test required to obtain a permit at school rather than making an appointment at a PennDOT location.

Williamson High School and Cowanesque High School will test the program over a two-year period. The Northern Tioga School District is part of the state’s vast rural region where PennDOT locations are few and far between. If the pilot’s successful, they’ll discuss widening it to more districts.

“In our more rural areas of the state, folks are used to driving longer distances, but it can be time-consuming and inconvenient,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. “There are also fewer driver license centers in our rural areas, so out-of-the-box thinking and programs like this one can be a big time saver for aspiring young drivers and their families.”

All-day commutes to access basic services are part of a difficult calculus rural families have to engage in. The threat of missed work can be an obstacle to everything from obtaining health care to pursuing higher education or helping a teen obtain the very thing they need to get by in the country - a driver’s license.

“The knowledge testing program being offered online is allowing our students to access an important milestone, getting a driver’s permit, more easily,” said Northern Tioga School District Superintendent Kristopher Kaufman. “By allowing this test to be offered at their local school, students will not need to miss a day of school and families will not need to miss a day of work to travel to a DMV.”