Alabama Rules of the Road: Licenses, Limits & Penalties

The Alabama rules of the road cover insurance, licensing, speed, right of way, passing, school buses, phones, seat belts, child seats, drinking and driving, and crash reporting, and the penalties climb from a $25 ticket to a felony sentence depending on what you do. What follows is what the state actually requires, with the statute references and current fine amounts.

Insurance You Must Carry

Every vehicle on Alabama’s public roads must carry liability insurance of at least $25,000 for one person’s injuries, $50,000 for all injuries in a single accident, and $25,000 for property damage.¹ A liability bond or cash deposit can substitute for a policy, but most drivers carry standard insurance.²

If the state’s online verification system flags your registration as uninsured, the Department of Revenue will suspend it. Reinstatement costs $200 for a first violation and $400 for a second or later violation within the preceding two registration years.³ A conviction for an insurance violation adds a fine of up to $500 for a first offense, or up to $1,000 and a six-month license suspension for repeat offenses.

Getting and Keeping a License

Adults 18 and older need a Class D license from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), which requires a vision screening, a written knowledge test, and a road skills exam.⁴ New residents have 30 days to transfer an out-of-state license.

Teens Under 18

Alabama uses a three-stage graduated driver licensing system. Stage I is a learner’s permit, and the young driver must have a licensed adult 21 or older in the vehicle at all times. After holding the permit at least six months and passing a road test, the driver can move to Stage II, a restricted license.⁵

Restricted license holders include all 16-year-old drivers and 17-year-olds licensed less than six months. They cannot drive between midnight and 6:00 a.m. unless an exception applies (work, school events, or emergencies), and they cannot carry more than one non-family passenger unless a licensed adult 21 or older is in the vehicle.⁶ Stage III, the unrestricted license, comes at age 17 for drivers who have held their license at least six months with no moving violations in the previous six months.⁵

Drivers of commercial motor vehicles need a Commercial Driver’s License under the Alabama Uniform Commercial Driver License Act.⁷

Speed Limits

Unless a sign posts something different, Alabama’s default speed limits are:

Urban districts: 30 mph
Unpaved roads: 35 mph
County-maintained paved roads in unincorporated areas: 45 mph
Two-lane state highways: 55 mph
Non-interstate four-lane highways: 65 mph
Interstate highways: 70 mph

The Governor can authorize different maximums on specific roads, and local governments may adjust limits based on safety studies.⁸

The posted number is not the whole rule. Alabama’s basic speed law requires you to drive at a speed reasonable for current conditions, and you can be cited at or below the limit if weather, visibility, or road hazards make that speed unsafe. The statute specifically names intersections, railroad crossings, curves, hilltops, and narrow or winding roads as places where extra caution is required.⁹

Right of Way

When two vehicles reach an uncontrolled intersection from different roads at about the same time, the driver on the left yields to the driver on the right.¹⁰ At a stop sign, you yield to all cross traffic before entering. At a four-way stop with simultaneous arrivals, the vehicle to the right goes first.

Drivers must yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk when signals are absent or not operating, once the pedestrian is on your half of the road or close enough on the other side to be in danger. If you stop for a pedestrian at a crosswalk, drivers behind you cannot pass your stopped vehicle.¹¹

Lane Use and Passing

On any road wide enough for two directions, you drive on the right half. Vehicles slower than the normal flow of traffic stay in the right-hand lane or as close to the right edge as practical, except when passing or preparing for a left turn.¹²

You may pass on the left only with a clear view of oncoming traffic and enough room to complete the pass safely. You must be back in your lane before coming within 200 feet of any approaching vehicle, and crossing a solid yellow center line to pass is illegal.¹³ The driver being passed must give way to the right and cannot speed up until the passing vehicle has cleared.¹⁴

Passing on the right is allowed in only two situations: when the vehicle ahead is making or about to make a left turn, or on a road with enough unobstructed pavement for two or more lanes moving in the same direction. Leaving the paved roadway to pass on the right is never permitted.¹⁵

Turning and Signaling

You must signal continuously for at least the last 100 feet before a turn.¹⁶ Right turns must start as close to the right curb or edge as practical, and left turns from the leftmost lane lawfully available for your direction.¹⁷ U-turns are restricted where visibility is limited, such as near the crest of a hill or on a curve where approaching drivers cannot see you from a safe distance.

School Buses and Emergency Vehicles

Stopping for a School Bus

When a school bus activates its flashing red lights and stop arm, vehicles approaching from either direction must stop completely and wait until the bus starts moving again, the driver signals you forward, or the lights turn off. This applies on highways, local roads, school property, and private roads.¹⁸

One exception: on a divided highway with four or more lanes and at least two lanes of traffic in each direction, you do not have to stop if the bus is on the opposite side of the physical divider. A center turn lane does not count as a physical divider, so if only a turn lane separates you from the bus, you still must stop.¹⁸

The Move Over Law

Alabama requires drivers to move over or slow down when approaching stopped emergency vehicles, wreckers, utility trucks, maintenance vehicles with flashing lights, and garbage trucks. On a highway with two or more lanes in your direction, vacate the lane closest to the stopped vehicle. If changing lanes is not safe, slow to at least 15 mph below the posted limit.

On a two-lane road, move as far away as you can within your lane and slow to 15 mph below the limit, or 10 mph if the limit is 20 or less. The offense is a misdemeanor with a $200 fine for a first offense, $250 for a second, and $300 plus a license suspension of at least 90 days for a third or later offense.¹⁹

Yielding to Emergency Vehicles

When an emergency vehicle approaches with lights and sirens, you must immediately pull to the right edge of the road, clear of any intersection, and stop until it passes.²⁰

Seat Belts and Child Restraints

Every occupant of a passenger vehicle must wear a seat belt while the vehicle is in motion. For drivers and front-seat passengers this is a primary offense, so an officer can stop you solely for not wearing a belt. Back-seat violations, added by a 2019 amendment, are secondary offenses and can be cited only after a stop for something else.²¹ The fine is up to $25.²²

The small fine is not the whole picture. If you file an injury claim after a crash, the other side’s insurer may argue your injuries were made worse by not wearing a belt and try to reduce what you recover.

Every child in a passenger vehicle must be secured in an appropriate restraint system, and the fine for a child restraint violation is $25.²³ Federal safety guidance is that children under 13 ride in the back seat whenever possible.²⁴

Distracted Driving

Alabama’s distracted driving law changed in 2023. The old texting ban was replaced with a broader statute covering holding a phone, watching video, recording while driving, and reaching for a device in a way that takes you out of your seated driving position.²⁵

Here is the wrinkle. The officer must first observe you driving in a visibly distracted manner (swerving, drifting across lanes without signaling, or operating the vehicle erratically) while you are using a device. You cannot be stopped simply for holding a phone if your driving looks normal.²⁶

Fines rise with each conviction:

First offense: up to $50
Second offense within 24 months: up to $100
Third or later within 24 months: up to $150

A first-time offender who arrives in court with a hands-free device, or proof of buying one, may be eligible for a reduced penalty.²⁵ Drivers under 18 with a restricted license face an additional ban on any non-essential handheld communication device, regardless of whether their driving is erratic.⁶

Impaired Driving

The legal blood alcohol concentration limit is 0.08% for most drivers, 0.04% for commercial drivers, and 0.02% for anyone under 21.²⁷ Penalties escalate sharply:

First conviction: a fine of $600 to $2,100, up to one year in jail, and a 90-day license suspension. The suspension can be stayed by installing an ignition interlock device for 90 days.
Second conviction: a fine of $1,100 to $5,100, up to one year in jail with a mandatory minimum of five days (or 30 days of community service), a one-year license revocation, and a required ignition interlock device for two years.²⁸
Fourth or later conviction: a Class C felony punishable by a fine of $4,100 to $10,100 and imprisonment of one year and one day up to 10 years, with a mandatory minimum of 10 days served in county jail. License revocation runs five years, followed by a four-year ignition interlock requirement.²⁸

The fourth conviction is where Alabama reclassifies the offense as a felony with prison time counted in years, and that reclassification stays with you on employment background checks and civil rights long after the sentence is served.

Reporting a Crash

If you are in a crash where anyone is injured or killed, or where property damage to any one person exceeds $250, you must file a written accident report with the Director of Public Safety within 30 days.²⁹ If the driver is physically unable to make the report, the vehicle’s owner has 10 days from learning about the accident to file it.

The $250 threshold covers most fender benders, so the practical rule is straightforward: if another vehicle, person, or piece of property was involved and there is visible damage, file the report. Skipping it can create problems with your license and your insurance claim later on.

Points and Reckless Driving

Alabama tracks traffic convictions with a point system. Points stay on your record for two years from the date of conviction, and once you accumulate enough points in a two-year window, ALEA suspends your license:³⁰

12 to 14 points: 60-day suspension
15 to 17 points: 90-day suspension
18 to 20 points: 120-day suspension
21 to 23 points: 180-day suspension
24 or more points: 365-day suspension

Reckless driving is one of the more common serious traffic charges. A first offense carries 5 to 90 days in jail, a fine of $25 to $500, or both. A second reckless driving conviction raises the jail range to 10 days to six months and allows the court to suspend your license for up to six months.³¹ Courts can also order traffic school or community service as part of a sentence.

1
Alabama Department of Revenue. Mandatory Liability Insurance
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-7A-4 – Liability Insurance Required
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-7A-12 – Suspension of Registration
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Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Driver License Information
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-6-7.2 – Restrictions on Issuance to Persons Under 18 Years of Age
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Alabama Department of Public Health. Graduated Drivers License
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-6-49.1 – Short Title
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-171 – Maximum Limits
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-170 – Speed Restrictions
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-110 – Vehicle Approaching or Entering Intersection
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Justia. Alabama Code 32-5A-211 – Pedestrians Right-of-Way in Crosswalks
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-80 – Driving on Right Side of Roadway Exceptions
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-84 – Limitations on Overtaking on Left
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-82 – Overtaking Vehicle on Left
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-83 – When Passing on Right Permitted
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-133 – Turning Movements and Required Signals
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-130 – Required Position and Method of Turning at Intersections
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-154 – Meeting or Overtaking School Bus
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-58.2 – Moving Over or Reducing Speed
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-115 – Operation of Vehicles on Approach of Authorized Emergency Vehicles
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5B-4 – Safety Belt Requirements for Occupants of Passenger Cars Exemptions
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Justia. Alabama Code 32-5B-5 – Penalty for Violations of Chapter
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Alabama Department of Public Health. Car Seats and Booster Seats
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National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Car Seats and Booster Seats
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-350.1 – Operating a Motor Vehicle in a Distracted Manner Violations Exceptions
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Governors Highway Safety Association. Distracted Driving
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-191 – Driving While Under Influence of Alcohol Controlled Substances Etc
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-191 – Driving While Under the Influence of Alcohol Controlled Substances Etc
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-7-5 – Report Required Following Accident
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Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code 760-X-1-.07 – Suspension and Revocation of Driver License Under the Point System
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Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 32-5A-190 – Reckless Driving