Illinois, Indiana among hardest states to pass a driver’s test, recent study shows – NBC Chicago

A recent study from an Arizona law firm examined driving tests issued in all 50 U.S. states and revealed which states offer the easiest and hardest tests, with Illinois and Indiana ranking finding themselves on the same side of the spectrum.

The Zanes Law study found that both states are among the 15 hardest states to pass a driving test, with Illinois ranking 13th and Indiana ranking 5th.

The study analyzed the following seven factors when evaluating the tests in each state and calculated the results to obtain a composite score out of 100, with a higher number meaning a more difficult test.

• Minimum age for new learner
• New minimum age for intermediate stage
• New minimum age with full privileges
• Ratio of licensed drivers to total number of registered private and commercial vehicles
• Population of drivers per 1,000 people of driving age
• Automobile population aged 19 and under per 1,000 people
• Knowledge test passing score (out of 100)

Illinois scored 60.17, good for 13th in the nation, sandwiched between Florida (12th) and California (14th).

Maryland is the hardest state to pass a driving test, with a score of 81.16, well over four points higher than the second and neighboring state of Virginia.

Maryland’s high score can be attributed to its high passing score of 88%, the highest required score in the country. Additionally, like in Illinois, a full privilege license is only available to drivers 18 and older.

As for fifth-place Indiana, a score of 68.95 was achieved due to an 84 percent passing score and full-privileged driver’s licenses issued only to adults 18 and older.

Although Illinois and Indiana both offer some of the toughest tests in the country, you won’t have to go far to find out what an easier test looks like, because Michigan, with a score of just 27.40, is ranked as the state with the easiest driving test to pass.

Ahead of Michigan, in the bottom five states were Kansas, Iowa, New Mexico and South Dakota, respectively.

An overview of the 15 hardest states to pass a driving test according to the study is available below: