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Defensive Driving in Laredo, Texas

by John Fabel | Last Updated: September 20, 2022

With nearly 260,000 residents potentially on the road at any given time, driving in Laredo can be challenging. In Texas’s tenth-largest city, driving can sometimes get as spicy as the salsa at Palenque Grill.

Laredo can be a dangerous place to drive, both physically and fiscally. Laredo averages 5,600 collisions per year, with nearly a third resulting in injuries or fatalities.  

Since most accidents are caused by a failure to control speed, law enforcement does its best to slow this trend by writing tickets. In the US, 100,000 speeding tickets are written every day, and, no doubt, Laredo drivers get their fair share. At an average cost of $150 a ticket, the nation’s speeders pay out nearly $5.5 billion dollars in fines, and each of them faces a 22-25% increase in their car insurance premiums for the next three years.

All of these costs could be drastically reduced with better driving by all. Laredo drivers can bring these numbers down by taking defensive driving (also known in Texas as a “driver safety course”). Tips and reminders of how to navigate the roads safely are the main topics of any driving course. The stated purpose of a TDLR-approved course is to teach drivers to “change their perceptions, attitudes, and skills to make Texas roads and highways a safer place to drive.” Other benefits of taking a defensive driving course include ticket dismissal and insurance savings, all at a reasonable cost.

The Easiest Way to Take Defensive Driving in Laredo? Do it Online

With the hectic pace of life, the easiest way to complete a course is to take it online. The ability to work at your own pace from your own place makes it the most convenient way, too. Any of the schools listed below offer courses approved for ticket dismissal and/or insurance discount. And you can choose any of them with confidence as they are fully certified by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR).

Laredo’s Best TDLR-Approved Online Defensive Driving Providers

School

Name

TDLR Ref #

Phone

Rating

CP-280

817-577-8854

5/5

CP-814

817-577-8854

4/5

CP-262

512-865-6549

4.5/5

CP-024

800-723-1955

4.5/5

CP-090

800-558-9887

4.5/5

Online Not for You?

We understand that learning online is not everybody’s preference. If you prefer to “get your learnin’ live,” you can still get out and take defensive driving in a classroom.

Depending on the school, classroom defensive driving has always been fun; being in the presence of humans again might even make it more so. Now I’m not gonna lie; classroom defensive driving in Laredo is hard to find anymore. Here is one school we found where you can still make that happen.

Gregory’s Driving School

Gregory’s Driving School has been serving the new and experienced drivers of Laredo for years. You can take on of their ticket dismissal classes any Saturday from 8-2:30.

GREGORY’S DRIVING SCHOOL—956-722-6151
4217 Marcella Ave.
Laredo, TX 78041

In the bygone B.C. (before Covid) days, schools like Comedy Guys, Funny Bone, and My Improv were famous for their defensive driving classes that were more or less dinner and a show. Hopefully, they’ll be back soon.

If You Have Received a Ticket in Laredo

Defensive driving courses can be used to improve driving skills and earn insurance discounts, but the benefit most people look for is ticket dismissal. 

The first step to taking defensive driving is receiving permission to do so. The Laredo process for asking “pretty please” is all outlined on their website.

Dismissal for most citations is possible unless the ticket was written:

Ticket dismissal is also not a possibility if you are the holder of a Commercial Drivers License (CDL) or if you have dismissed a ticket with defensive driving in the past 12 months.

Driving in Laredo

Another reason why sharpening your driving skills in Laredo should come as no surprise to those who drive there regularly.

Late last year, a study published by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute determined Laredo has the third most truck-congested roadway in the state. If you have driven the Bob Bullock Loop between the World Trade Bridge to I-35, chances are good you have been surrounded by trucks and been inconvenienced by the delays they can cause.

Not only are trucks potentially dangerous road mates, the study goes on to report that drivers used an extra 267,000 gallons of gas in the traffic caused by all the big rigs.

In addition to having the 3rd most truck-congested roadway, Laredo also has four other roads that rank in Texas’s top 100:

I guess the most encouraging finding in the study is that while Bob Bullock Fwy is number 3 today, it was number two last year. Hey, improvement is improvement, right?

More Cool Stuff About Laredo

Laredo was established in 1755, making it older than the United States, but its biggest celebration honors the birthday of the “Father” of the U.S., George Washington.

The U.S. gets “President’s Day” done on one random spring Monday. Laredo’s Washington’s Birthday celebration stretches from late January through most of February and attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors. These visitors can help mark the occasion by joining in the Border Beer Fest, the Jalapeño Festival, the Stockmen’s Ball, the Princess Pocahontas Pageant, the Mr. South Texas Luncheon, an air show, and two major parades. Washington is a big deal here.

If you can safely negotiate your way past the trucks on Bob Bullock, there’s lots to see and do in Laredo, things like—

One of the few places in Texas to operate under seven flags, there is much to do. Driving defensively will help you to stay safe while you explore.

John Fabel

I have a long and checkered history with defensive driving. I took my first "court invited" course at age 15 and realized immediately that there had to be a better way. Since that first experience, I have gone on to teach defensive driving classroom courses and to author four internet courses in 2 states. After nearly 25 years in the industry, I can help you find a course that will be the best fit for you.

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