Q19: Is it legal to drive barefoot?

Yes! It is perfectly legal to drive while barefoot in all 50 states in the United States, in Canada, and in the U.K. This has been verified over and over, despite the persistent urban myth to the contrary in some states. The only exception to this relates to motorcycles in Alabama, where that state requires footwear to operate or ride a motorcycle (but not a car). For other countries of the world, we are not currently aware of any of them requiring footwear to drive a car.

As for the United States, anyone who still doubts that driving barefoot is perfectly legal can simply call their local or state police and ask them. And they should be able to give you a definitive answer. Unfortunately, we have heard of a few isolated cases where even certain police officers still believe the myth. But if anyone ever encounters that in someone who should know better, asking them to cite the exact statute number or vehicle code for that law will reveal they are mistaken, as they will be unable to, since none exists.

Also, most, if not all, state vehicle codes are now available on the Internet for easy researching as to what is and what isn’t actually a law in each respective state.

More information on the joys and legalities of driving barefoot can be found on our Driving Barefoot page.