HONOLULU (KHON2) -- Many drivers are failing Honolulu's driver's license road test. That has many parents asking "has the test gotten more difficult?"
It is a great day for Isaac Matsumoto. He finally got his driver's license, passing the road test on his second try.
"Pretty hard," Matsumoto said. "But now that I took the driving class, it was a lot easier,"
"When I first took my test when I was in my 20s, in Dillingham, I remember it feeling hard," Ariel Shields said.
Finding the road test difficult seems to be common. Over the last 5 years, drivers pass the road test only about half the time.
The best was just 55 percent in 2020; the worst was 47 percent in 2019.
Last year, it was close to a 50-50 split, which the city says is about the national average.
"Just for the record the test has not gotten any harder," Kim Hashiro, director of the Department of Customer Services said. "It hasn't gotten any harder. In the last 5 years, we've been able to provide the stats, it's still been close to a 50-50 pass fail rate,"
"I think that's crazy," Matsumoto said. "I think most people can drive, but there so many things that you don't think about that it's so easy to fail,"
Hashiro says drivers who do not pass are making the same mistakes.
"Not completing a head check properly," Hashiro said. "So that means actually turning your head completely to look out the window to make sure there's no blind spots that you're missing before you change lanes. The other would be speeding,"
Hashiro says the city's website has lots of tips on helping drivers pass. She also reminds you that on test day, you need all original documents -- safety check, registration and proof of insurance. And your vehicle needs to be safe and will be inspected before the road test.
"Our main goal is to make sure our roads are safe." said Hashiro.
For more information, visit Honolulu - Department of Customer Services website.