Special drives: rural road, motorway and darkness explained

How many special drives are compulsory?

For class B, the Driving Student Training Regulation (Fahrschüler-Ausbildungsordnung) requires 12 special training drives of 45 minutes each:

• 5 × rural road drive on federal or state roads (Bundes- oder Landstraßen) – including at least one drive of 2 × 45 minutes in one go
• 4 × motorway drive (or a road for motor vehicles only, a Kraftfahrstraße, with separate carriageways) – including at least one drive of 2 × 45 minutes; if possible, at least 45 minutes on sections without a speed limit or with a limit of at least 120 km/h
• 3 × drive at dusk or in darkness – at least half of them on a motorway, federal road or state road

The same applies to BF17. If you already hold a motorcycle class, you get no reduction for class B.

When do you drive them?

For a first licence, the basic training (Grundausbildung) should if possible be completed before the special drives begin. The law does not set how many ordinary practice lessons you need beforehand – that is decided by your driving instructor.

What do they cost?

The driving school must state the prices for rural road, motorway and night drives separately on its price list. For orientation (market data, not official prices):

• national average 2025: €72.40 per special drive (industry survey MOVING)
• Berlin price lists in October 2026: roughly €56 to €64

With 12 drives, even a €10 difference per drive adds up to €120. So don't compare only the price per lesson. With the cost calculator you can try out different prices.

Do special drives count as practice lessons?

No – they come on top of the practice lessons. According to an analysis by the Bundesanstalt für Straßenwesen (BASt, Federal Highway Research Institute), the median is 35 driving lessons in total, including the 12 special drives.

Draft – not yet in force: The reform draft (BR-Drs. 365/26) keeps rural road, motorway and night drives but no longer prescribes a fixed number – the scope is to depend on your stage of training. This is planned from 1 January 2027; training begun before then is to be able to be completed under the old rules. As of October 2026, this has not been adopted.