Reminder: driving test centre instructions for ADIs
When arriving at a driving test centre, there are on-site instructions you and your candidates must follow.It's important you and your candidates:
You may be training to become a driving instructor and along the way you may find that life just gets in the way. Graham Hooper tells his story of how he beats that dreaded monster procrastination. You may recognise that what he talks about is just how we all find that life just gets in the way. Beating distractions is essential to learning and developing your business.
On 1 March the penalties for using a hand held mobile phone whilst behind the wheel of a car will increase to six points and a £200 fine. This increase in points means that 'new' drivers (who have held a full licence for less than two years) caught holding the phone on just one occasion will have their licence revoked and will only get it back by retaking and passing both parts of the driving test.
Learner drivers will be able to take driving lessons on motorways before passing their driving test under new plans set out today (30 December 2016) by Transport Minister Andrew Jones. At the moment, you can only have driving lessons on motorways after you’ve passed your driving test. Some newly-qualified drivers take lessons through the voluntary Pass Plus scheme. Voluntary motorway lessons with a qualified instructorUnder the new plans, learner drivers would need to be:
Any change to the law would be well-publicised before coming into effect. Until then, it’s still illegal for a learner driver to drive on a motorway. Driving instructor training and vehiclesThe Department for Transport is also asking for views on whether:
Better prepared for a lifetime of safe drivingAllowing learner drivers to have lessons on motorways will help to make sure more drivers know how to use motorways safely. The changes will allow learner drivers to:
Transport Minister, Andrew Jones, said: We have some of the safest roads in the world and we want to make them even safer. These changes will equip learners with a wider range of experience and greater skill set which will improve safety levels on our roads. RAC Foundation Director, Steve Gooding, said: The casualty statistics tell us that motorways are our safest roads, but they can feel anything but safe to a newly qualified driver heading down the slip road for the first time to join a fast moving, often heavy, flow of traffic. Many are so intimidated by the motorway environment that they choose instead to use statistically more dangerous roads, so we welcome this move which will help new drivers get the training they need to use motorways safely. Have your say follow the link There has been a statistically significant increase in the number of people killed or seriously injured in road traffic accidents between the years ending September 2015 and 2016. This indicates that there are a number of factors that have combined together to worsen some aspects of safety on Britain’s roads. However, there is some uncertainty in this owing to methodological changes.
Although the number of people killed in road traffic accidents has increased between years, this change is small enough that it can be explained by the natural variation in deaths over time. Therefore there is not yet enough evidence to say that the number of fatalities is changing between years. Full report Should road safety become part of the school curriculuOn we recently ran a news story about IAM to 15-17 year olds in the Scottish borders.The ‘Drivewise’ training, backed by a £73k grant from the Scottish Road Safety Framework’s Strategic Partnership Board, will be delivered to 15 to 17-year-old students at five secondary schools in the Borders.
The course aims to equip young drivers with a basic knowledge of driving and road rules through simple manoeuvring of a vehicle, and instil in them good driving attitudes and habits. Students will start off in the classroom, before being shown by an instructor the basics of manoeuvring a vehicle safely, and getting to have a try themselves. Upon announcing the new training, Sarah Sillars, IAM RoadSmart chief executive officer, said: “IAM RoadSmart has long campaigned for road safety to be a part of the National Curriculum, and through this pioneering scheme in the Scottish Borders, it is starting to happen. “It is crucial that the ‘safe driving is fun’ message is brought into the lives of young people at school age and encouraged as part of the school system. We believe that simply leaving young people at 17 to handle this all by themselves increases the risk tremendously to the driver and those around them.” This news got me thinking: should road safety become part of the school curriculum? This is not a particularly new question to ask. In 2011, writing in a blog for the Telegraph, Ian Cowie commented: “Nobody wants to burden teenagers with more exams but, given the scale of the carnage among the young, improved education about road safety seems a sensible step.” Just last year a petition was launched by a roads policing inspector, calling on the Government to introduce road user education into the National Curriculum. The petition stated that: ‘Pilot studies in Europe show a 40% reduction in accidents for those who train at school’. Of course, in the United States, drivers education was introduced in schools many years ago, as far back as 1940. Drivers education has evolved over the years and in many states it is now compulsory young drivers to complete a state-approved drivers education course. Some states let teens take online drivers education, while others still require drivers education to be completed in the classroom. In the U.S., drivers education forms one part of a wider Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) program, credited with saving thousands of lives every year. Reportedly, 16-year-old drivers in the U.S. who are subject to GDL have 37% fewer crashes per year. When GDL was introduced in New Zealand, car crash injuries reduced by 23% for 15-19 year olds. So, should we push for a full GDL system in the UK? There have been calls for such a system before, and it is estimated that GDL could prevent more than 400 deaths and serious injuries every year in Britain. The evidence is there. And now IAM is introducing pre-license driver training in schools. Could this be the start of a new approach to teaching young people to drive? Vehicle recalls: what you need to know
DVSA is urging drivers to check that their vehicles, parts or accessories aren’t subject to a safety recall. New figures show that 2.6 million vehicles were affected by a recall between April 2015 to March 2016. How recalls work Manufacturers should recall vehicles when they become aware of a safety problem, and repair them free of charge. Some parts and accessories - such as child car seats and tyres - aren't registered to drivers like vehicles are, so manufacturers can't always trace the owner. It’s vital that you check for recalls that affect these. Check for vehicle, part or accessory recalls Reporting serious safety defects If you find a serious defect that affects the safety of your vehicle, one of its parts, or an accessory, report it to the manufacturer immediately. Tell DVSA if you’re not happy with how the manufacturer is dealing with your report. Get new recall alerts You can sign up for email alerts to get a monthly summary of the latest recalls. DVSA is also starting to use its Facebook and Twitter accounts to issue new recall alerts. More information Find out more about vehicle recalls and faults. |
AuthorSusan McCormack Archives
October 2022
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