This will not help reduce traffic problems in D.C. (boldface mine):
On Tuesday, the MVA announced that parallel parking is no longer part of the driver’s license test in Maryland. Officials said other parts of the test — the two-point reverse turn and the on-road portion — are sufficient to assess a driver’s skill….
“If you live in D.C., you’re going to be doing a lot of parallel parking,” he said. “But the fact is that most people who don’t live in the city don’t parallel park that often.”
David said the driving-instructor community has been awash in rumors that there might be another reason behind the change. Some MVA locations are backed up more than two months to schedule a driving test, presumably clogged by people who failed their parking the first time.
“It is by far the most complex thing on the actual skill test,” David said. “Maybe taking out parallel parking will help more people pass, help alleviate that part of it.”
If you can’t manage to parallel park, then you’re not a good enough driver to be driving in a crowded urban area.
Maryland Drivers in D.C. are scary enough as it is…
mikethemadbiologist
I would think a mandatory minimum period between failing and retrying would fix a backlog without as bad side effects as this! People would practice more and take their first try more seriously, and not be able to keep scheduling tests in time slots that people who are actually going to pass will use.
When I got a Maryland driver’s license, all I had to do was send 25 cents and two Cheerios boxtops to Annapolis.