Jim was an excellent teacher and gave great advice on how to pass the test. His demeanor makes driving much less stressful and that is exactly what I needed. I would definitely recommend Mad Area Driving School to a friend. I passed first time and was given every confidence to do so. Read Less

Considering that I had driving experience abroad, I got just what I needed here. Jim was responsive and showed me the tips and tricks, that were just enough to pass the license exam. Also, he seemed to be well known in the DMV office. So when my examiner saw that I had trained with Jim, I felt like it gave out a positive message about my technical know-hows. Read Less

Strongly recommend. I wish I could give them more than 5 star.I joined this driving school because some of my other friends went there and had a great experience. I was nervous and my instructor was fabulous and calmed my nerves down.Jim, the instructor is extremely professional and good while behind-the-wheel lessons, and explains how to perform the different maneuvers and what mistakes were made without making you feel bad and nervous. He will take you to almost every type of road heavy traffic ,low traffic, sharp turns, curvy turns etc etc. I now have my license and am very happy I chose Mad Area for my driver training.The instructor comes to your place and will park his car, and give you a call to let you know he is there. I also registered with Jim for the actual DMV test. JIM picked me up an hour before, for some practice and last minute tips and it all worked out well and Jim even stayed behind patiently for my paperwork at the DMV after my road test to drop me back home. Overall I felt pretty good that I signed up for them - it really boosted my confidence. I'd recommend this school. I would highly recommend this school to anyone who wants to learn the driving, everything else might be just a waste of money (I have tried 1 other school as well). Read Less

I strongly recommend the Mad Area Driving school. Jim, the instructor is extremely patient, experienced and good while behind-the-wheel lessons, and explains how to perform the different maneuvers and what mistakes were made without making you feel bad and nervous. The lessons are priced reasonably and Jim was pretty honest about how many lessons I would need depending on previous driving experience. You are picked up and dropped off before and after the lesson at a place of your convenience in Madison and Jim even stayed behind patiently for my paperwork at the DMV after my road test to drop me back home. I went to another driving school in the past and paid a fortune for driving lessons only to fail the road test. I used to get extremely nervous while driving but after taking 4-5 lessons with Jim I passed my road test. Initially, a couple of my lessons were canceled last minute, which is okay by me as all driving schools get pretty busy during spring-summer but Jim is pretty accessible by phone, and after that all my lessons were held as scheduled. Overall a great experience as compared to other driving schools. Read Less

My review is going to be long because I am happy that I passed my road test on my first attempt and without being nervous. Before going to Mad area driving school, I went to another school for one class and I was not confident at all and they literally force you to take many classes to make money and its way expensive too. I am glad I joined Mad area driving school and Jim was my instructor and he was extremely good. I gained my confidence on the very first day of the class. He said I will be ready with 2 more sessions, like he said I was ready. He taught clearly and tested me very well during the sessions so that I am ready completely. Thank you Jim! Read Less

I had never driven before but once I started with Jim, his lessons were thorough and very informative. He always made it on time and made me practice till I perfected all the skills. Thanks to him, I was able to pass the test on my first try after just a couple lessons. I would definitely recommend him to everyone and anyone that wants to learn how to drive.Read Less

I learnt from Jim at Mad Area Driving and give it five stars!  I had very little driving experience and wasn't sure how many classes I would need. After the introduction class he suggested I do four classes instead of six and I was impressed with their honesty. The instructor was very patient and taught good responsible driving instead of just telling you how to get through your road test. He explained the reasoning behind the rules which made it easier to learn. I would recommend them to a friend ! Read Less

The man was late for our appointment for about 30 minutes. I was already on the bus station planning to go home but he called, and then I was thinking, then maybe give it a shot.He seemed like a one-man company, even though he stated he has 4 people working for him.  We left several messages and never got answer back, including the last one for cancellation because of his dishonest attitude.I have major doubt for this "company"(?) because of this man, Jim, who tried to cheat me for paying more.  When we called and made appointment, we were told the payment can be done for 1st class. Then for the 1st class, I asked him how we should pay, and was blamed for not bringing enough cash or check. I told him it wasn't our fault because he didn't make it clear, and also my husband was there to sort it out with you but you were way too late and my husband had to leave.  In the end of the class, he told me I should pay him 70/75 for 1.5 hr class instead of 1 hr class for 49, the latter the price he gave us over the phone.  His logic went like, 25 mins driving to/from pick-up and drop-off points, which is both downtown school area.  I challenged him saying it wasn't what he said over the phone, and clearly we only had class for 1 hr.  He then said I was "obviously very confused" 2-3 times. Another thing that bothered me was, he was being a bit touchy while trying to be funny. No, it felt creepy.  No no.I immediately cancelled the next class, as long as I got home. Left message in his "company" and still got several calls on the day of the class. Probably never care to check his message? Read Less

Perfect! Very nice, complete, the price is good too! The instructor is very experienced and teaches very well. Recommended to everybody who wanna learn driving. And the nice thing: I have passed the road-test exam at the first trial by help of this school. Strongly recommended for anyone who wanna be a successful driver.Read Less

They were great for I was very nervous at first but the teacher soon made me feel comfortable behind the wheel and I started learning very fast. I never drove before and with the great one on one instructions I only needed six lessons. I now have my license and know I could not have done it without their professional help. Thank You! Read Less

They were EXCELLENT in all areas. Was able to get an appointment the next day and the teacher called me ten minutes before to remind me and was on time for all five lessons. I expected to take about eight lessons for I was very nervous to start driving but he soon built up my confidence and I was learning to control the car and do all the skills required for the driving test. I used the school car for the test which was very reasonable and since he knew the examiners I felt even more at ease. I passed the test on first try and was told I had the best score of the day. Thank you Mad-Area Driving School for a job well done!!! Read Less

They were great! I was very nervous about learning to drive since a close friend was killed in an auto accident. They helped me overcome my fears and the instructor was very patient which helped me build my confidence. I only needed 6 lessons and they took me to the once dreaded road test at which time the examiner stated I did a great job and he wished he had more drivers like me. Thank you Mad-Area for helping me through this. I can now get around without relying on friends and waiting in the cold for the winter bus rides... Read Less

Mad Area Driving School completely failed to provide me with any service whatsoever. First, I tried to contact them by email, but all they would reply is that I needed to call them. If they won't help customers by email, why do they publish an email address on their website? So I took the extra time out of my day to call them, and we scheduled an appointment for an instructor to pick me up for a driving lesson. When the time came around for the lesson, I was standing at my living room window looking out over the street, waiting. Twenty minutes later, when there was still no sign of them, I called for an ETA, thinking maybe they were running late. No one answered their office phone, so I had to leave a message. They never showed up, nor called for directions, nor made any attempt to contact me. I didn't hear anything back at all until the end of the following day, after normal business hours. By this point I had given up on them and already scheduled lessons through another company, so I didn't want to waste my time talking to them. But they called three times in less than an hour, so I finally answered just so they would stop interrupting my evening. The representative on the phone identified himself as Jim from Madison Area Driving School (who I believe is the owner), then simply said, "You called?" He didn't seem to have a clue who I was or what he was supposed to be calling me about, even though I had left a pretty clear message. I tried to tell him I was going with another company and no longer needed his assistance, but he pushed so I gave him the time and address of my appointment and explained that they had stood me up. He immediately insisted that they were there, I assured him that they hadn't been, and he again insisted that they were. I said that I was there, so I KNEW they hadn't been, and that I didn't want to waste my time discussing it further; his only response was to hang up on me. Now, even though I was frustrated, the owner could have salvaged the situation by simply apologizing for the mistake and trying to figure out how it happened -- in other words, by showing even a modicum of basic customer service skill. Instead, he all but called me a liar. Despite that, I still want to extend the benefit of the doubt and assume that the owner was just going with what the paperwork said, not intentionally lying to me. But if the instructor had, say, made an honest mistake and went to the wrong address, why didn't they call me right then? They had my phone number. If he had just called, I could have given him directions and this whole issue would have been fixed before it even started. I also want to make it clear that, though I was getting pretty frustrated with the phone rep (justifiably, I think), I remained reasonably polite throughout the conversation; I was not shouting, swearing or insulting him in any way, even though he was all but calling me a liar. Hanging up on me was completely uncalled for. I can't comment on their instruction technique, but their office staff seems to be completely incompetent, and their customer service couldn't get much worse. The only way they could possibly fail more than they already have is if they try to bill me for the lesson they skipped out on (they haven't so far, but I'm watching my mailbox). If you need driving lessons, I've had a mostly positive experience with my new instructor at Four Lakes Driving School. But avoid Mad Area Driving School like the plague. Read Less

Mad Area Driving School completely failed to provide me with any service whatsoever.First, I tried to contact them by email, but all they would reply is that I needed to call them. If they won't help customers by email, why do they publish an email address on their website?So I took the extra time out of my day to call them, and we scheduled an appointment for an instructor to pick me up for a driving lesson. When the time came around for the lesson, I was standing at my living room window looking out over the street, waiting. Twenty minutes later, when there was still no sign of them, I called for an ETA, thinking maybe they were running late. No one answered their office phone, so I had to leave a message. They never showed up, nor called for directions, nor made any attempt to contact me. I didn't hear anything back at all until the end of the following day, after normal business hours. By this point I had given up on them and already scheduled lessons through another company, so I didn't want to waste my time talking to them. But they called three times in less than an hour, so I finally answered just so they would stop interrupting my evening.The representative on the phone identified himself as Jim from Madison Area Driving School (who I believe is the owner), then simply said, "You called?" He didn't seem to have a clue who I was or what he was supposed to be calling me about, even though I had left a pretty clear message. I tried to tell him I was going with another company and no longer needed his assistance, but he pushed so I gave him the time and address of my appointment and explained that they had stood me up. He immediately insisted that they were there, I assured him that they hadn't been, and he again insisted that they were. I said that I was there, so I KNEW they hadn't been, and that I didn't want to waste my time discussing it further; his only response was to hang up on me.Now, even though I was frustrated, the owner could have salvaged the situation by simply apologizing for the mistake and trying to figure out how it happened -- in other words, by showing even a modicum of basic customer service skill. Instead, he all but called me a liar.Despite that, I still want to extend the benefit of the doubt and assume that the owner was just going with what the paperwork said, not intentionally lying to me. But if the instructor had, say, made an honest mistake and went to the wrong address, why didn't they call me right then? They had my phone number. If he had just called, I could have given him directions and this whole issue would have been fixed before it even started. I also want to make it clear that, though I was getting pretty frustrated with the phone rep (justifiably, I think), I remained reasonably polite throughout the conversation; I was not shouting, swearing or insulting him in any way, even though he was all but calling me a liar. Hanging up on me was completely uncalled for.I can't comment on their instruction technique, but their office staff seems to be completely incompetent, and their customer service couldn't get much worse. The only way they could possibly fail more than they already have is if they try to bill me for the lesson they skipped out on (they haven't so far, but I'm watching my mailbox). If you need driving lessons, I've had a mostly positive experience with my new instructor at Four Lakes Driving School. But avoid Mad Area Driving School like the plague. Read Less