Local Driving School Shifts Into High Gear to Meet Demand

It’s that time of year again. 

In cars bearing signs reading "Student Driver," teens are fanning out across the landscape and learning how to drive, in the hope of obtaining that adolescent rite of independence: the driver’s license.

For five years, professional driving instructor George Cecala of  has been preparing area residents for the state's road test.

On a recent Friday afternoon, driving student Adrianna Hering listens intently as Cecala guides her through the second of three two-hour behind-the-wheel classes in one of the school’s familiar sunburst-colored cars.

Main Street in Moorestown can be a bit harried for the experienced, let alone the newcomer. Maybe it's the calm voice flowing from Cecala, but Hering, 16, a sophomore at Cinnaminson High School, steers her tonnage with ease.

To manage his charges, Cecala mixes in light conversation, offers tactful directions and keeps a level demeanor. 

Cecala serves as part coach: “See how you pushed it. You want to just press it;" part comforter: “I know you can make this turn;" and part high-standard enforcer: “Keep getting good marks in school.”

He knows new drivers can become anxious and frustrated.

“One of the biggest struggles for a new driver is turning the car and being able to recover,” says Cecala, who is the official driver for the president of the New Jersey Bar Association. “And when new students first drive on a road, oncoming traffic can be scary." 

The last two days, Cecala’s pupils showed high results: All nine students who tried passed their road tests.

Like many teens, Hering is wagering on a big present for her next birthday.

"I have my road test scheduled for next Jan. 11," says Hering, the day she turns 17, the legal driving age in New Jersey. 

For 13 years, vice president Tony Caracci, of South Jersey Driving School, was a high school teacher. While working at Triton Regional High School in Runnemede, he started the driver's education program. 

“Tony then decided to open his own business. And because he had a lot of knowledge about the state’s driving tests, he thought a driving school would offer the best opportunities,” says Tony’s wife, MaryBeth Caracci.

In 1983 he bought his first dual-brake car—after selling his own car—and opened his first driving school in Marlton.

“He wanted to be near the larger high schools, like Cherokee and Lenape, since he knew a large portion of our business would be high school students,” says MaryBeth.

Ten years ago, MaryBeth joined her husband in the business—after a long stint in public relations— and the couple relocated the establishment to Chester Avenue in Moorestown. Throughout the years, demand has grown, and they now have six cars in their fleet. 

Most students want to learn on automatic transmission, she says. But they have one student car equipped with manual transmission. Sometimes they have clients who need to learn how to operate a stick shift for work. 

“And yesterday, I had a couple come in who were going to Italy for their honeymoon," she says. "Most cars over there are stick shift.”

For obvious reasons, MaryBeth says the spring and summer coax the most students into the school, where vision and written tests can also be administered.

“Most parents want their kids to be learning how to drive during nicer weather.”

She says the school—which has six instructors—recognizes the demand for other types of driver’s education courses, not just for the new driver.

The center offers defensive driving classes, which identify useful tools to avoid a dangerous situation for new or experienced drivers. Senior citizen lessons are designed for those retesting or for anyone concerned about their skills. And refresher courses hone driving skills before a student takes the road test.

Both Caraccis, who live in Delran and have three adult daughters, are active participants in community-related organizations. They serve as members of the Driving School Association of New Jersey—Tony is the vice president—and are members of the business associations in both Delran and Moorestown.

“We think we’ve taught more than 100,000 students,” says MaryBeth. “In fact, we are starting to teach the kids of some people we taught years ago. It just happened twice in the last two weeks.”