Driving Test Form - Final Part

I can't believe it has been a months since I last updated this learner driver tips blog, but anyway let's finish discussing the last few sections of the driving test form - sections 23 to 27.

23. Positioning - this is divided into two sections:
Normal driving position - faults here would include driving too close to the kerb or over the white centre line when you don't need to be. But it would also include cutting across the normal road position when going ahead at a roundabout (without lane markings). It continues to surprise me that almost all roundabouts have lane dividers on approach (green arrow) and almost none have them on the roundabout (red arrow). The roads in the UK are very good but far from perfect. My tip for this one is to aim for the yellow bollard (in front of the car in this pic) and you will be remaining in the left lane.



Lane discipline - This one seems to be exclusively for roundabouts that DO have lane road markings on the roundabout. By definition there will be less test failures for this one, since most roundabouts don't have lane markers. However in my experience a lot of new drivers are not comfortable on these roundabouts because they are generally large, multi lane and confusing to the untrained eye. Maybe I should cover these in a separate post sometime soon.

24. Pedestrian crossings - fairly obvious this one. Failure to give precedence to pedestrians on a pedestrian crossing. Non-compliance with lights at Pedestrian Controlled crossings. The trick here is to make sure that you are alert and if you see a crossing, expect that there may be someone walking towards it. The hazard perception test is very good at promoting this approach - look for a hazard and you will be not be surprised it it develops into a problem.

25. Position for normal stops - during an average driving test, you will be asked to stop on the left several times. You need to choose somewhere that is safe, legal and convenient. A few bad examples are opposite a junction, on double yellow lines and blocking someone's driveway. Although every driving test will include a stop that requires you to move off at an angle by parking reasonably close to a parked vehicle. For this element the examiner by advise you to "not worry about blocking a driveway on this occasion. This is because they want you park in particular position to do the angle start.

26. Awareness and planning -  this can cover many, many situation, in examiner speak this is what they are say "failure to judge what other road users are going to do and react accordingly". A few examples that I recall from driving test:

A coach (not a bus) has stopped on the left and the driver has pulled up close to it and doesn't realise that it is going to be there for a while....

A vehicle is clearly giving away its priority let's say on a roundabout because their exit route is not clear. the driver is unaware of why this is happening and remains stationary, meanwhile the traffic behind is becoming increasingly impatient.....

A high sided heavy goods vehicle is waiting to pass under a low bridge and needs to be in the middle of the road and the driver doesn't know and doesn't react....

Just like all faults in a driving test, I don't mean to suggest that the three above examples would be a test failure. It really depends on the context on the situation, how long it takes for you to work it out, how much a problem that is. This is discussed in an earlier blog post.

26. Ancillary controls - this is to do with windscreen wipers heater controls etc. So an example might be it is pouring with rain and the driver doesn't know how the wipers work or doesn't think they are necessary and the examiner know they are required. Same would go for a misted windscreen or similar.

Well that's it for now and remember if you want to book an intensive course in Lichfield please click the link. The same goes for Leicester

Conventional Traffic Lights i.e. Not Filtered

This post concerns conventional traffic light controlled junctions. I will cover filtered traffic light junction in the next post.

When turning right at most traffic light junctions, you need to position the car waiting to turn right. This can sometimes be difficult to judge, here are a few tips that will help you decide.

Right Turn Only

As you approach the above crossroad, it is fairly clear that the right lane is right turn only. On modern roads this is the most common arrangement, but beware of (generally) older ones where the right lane can also proceed ahead (see below). Also the current convention is to pass passenger side to passenger side, look out for arrows which indicate the opposite (again generally older designed junctions). I learned to drive in the early seventies and the convention was to pass driver's side to driver's side. This is safer since you can see better, but less efficient and to be honest I can't really remember it changing.

So considering this image, when the light is green and you have on-coming traffic - where do you wait? Well the first decision is whether to cross the white STOP line. If I were driving the first vehicle then I'd move forward on green (unless something very unusual is happening). However if I were the second or subsequent vehicle, I would only cross the line if I was sure that I could get the back of my car beyond the pedestrian part of the crossing - see next image.

This is to make sure that I am caught is a bad spot when the lights change. As the lead vehicle progresses further into the junction, you may find that there is enough room to move forward. So where do we wait, even I am impatient :-)

The exact position will vary from crossroad to crossroad but here's my simple rule. I will not go too far forward in case I block someone turning right from opposite and I will not go too far right so I don't make on-going traffic drive around me.

This picture demonstrates this fairly well. The blue car is blocking the lane that the white van is in, but it has to turn right - so fine. The blue car could go a couple of feet further right but not too far - remember you can always creep further forward (but NOT back). The white car is just crossing the pedestrian studs, so that looks fine. But the car that has Google's camera should wait here for now

Right Hand Lane can go ahead as well as right

So remembering that some right hand lanes can go ahead, as well as right - the wait position would not be so far right (so you don't block on-going traffic). But everything else would be the same as the above example.

Very often you can't see the opposite road's arrows (blocked by cars or elevation change). In my experience, if your right lane is right turn only then the one opposite is the same. But as ever with driving, proceed with caution and look for the evidence.

Next post I will have a look at filtered traffic light junctions and if anyone wants to take an intensive course in Leicester or Redditch just click one of the links.

What is the speed limit? Part Three

This last section on speed limits concerns that national speed limit, there are actually two. The first national speed limit is 30 mph in a built up area, but it is the second one that I want to explain here.

The first thing to notice about the national limit sign, shown below, is that there is no number on the sign. Also you will see this sign on a variety of different roads, from fast dual carriageways to narrow country lanes. This national speed limit demands a different limit for different vehicles, even a car that tows a caravan will need to observe a lower limit. 
When I see this sign, I think it means use your "common sense". The theoretical limit for a car on the road below is 60 mph, but that would be crazy on this narrow lane - 25 mph maybe too fast. As always you need to drive to the conditions that are apparent. Most of my pupils are very surprised when they enter a road like this one and see this sign. They assume that since they are encouraged to drive reasonably close to other speed limits that I would expect the same here. So I explain that if the county and borough councils had to specify exact speed limits for every road, the cost would be prohibitive. This is because most of the roads in the UK are national, but most of the roads that we regularly drive on are signed up with specific limits. The cost of mounting signs on all of these type of roads would be enormous. Each would need a lamp, therefore an electricity supply, someone would need to maintain them, replace bulbs, clean them etc.

When you join a national speed limit dual carriageway, you should try to get up to about 60 mph (as long as the traffic will allow this. This is so that heavy goods vehicles (which are speed limited) will not catch up and overtake you. If you are driving 50 mph on a clear road, the truck driver will be "forced" to overtake you. The truck will take a while to do this since it is limited to 56 mph (probably), and both lanes of a fast dual carriageway will be blocked (not a good idea).

If you know anyone that wants to learn to drive in Leicester, click the link - same goes for Burton-on-Trent.

What is the speed limit? Part Two

There are some roads that I find the speed limits difficult to understand, here are a couple of examples.

This is Cricket Lane in Lichfield; there are houses on the left, close to the road and yet the speed limit is 40 mph (at least there are a few repeaters to remind you).

The above picture is Cappers Lane, also in Lichfield and the limit is 30 mph. it really doesn't look like it and two things are true. Most of the traffic on this road will be exceeding that limit and people fail their driving tests every day on this stretch of road. So use the tips from Part One to help work out the limit; a driving test examiner will be quite forgiving if you drive a little below the limit for a short period (while you work it out).

Finally look at the 2 signs below, both show that speed cameras may be around (fixed or mobile). I can't see the point of the one on the right, the one on the left shows the camera sign AND the speed limit - much more informative.

If you are looking for driving lessons in Leicester or an intensive course, why not click on one of the links

Keeping a bubble of safety around your new (or old) car

Here a few tips to keep you safe before and after you pass.

When travelling in traffic & you need to stop, try to maintain a gap of around 1.5 meters to the vehicle in front. Measure this easily by checking that you can just see the tyres of the vehicle ahead touching the tarmac (road). Why why why - try the car in front breaks down & if you are too close, how would you steer around? It could also roll back - who hasn't done that? If an emergency vehicle wants to come between traffic, it will be easier to go left or right if you leave a gap - could save a life or ....

In dry weather use the 2 second rule; by watching the vehicle ahead pass a stationary object (tree, sign, bridge) and then saying "Only a fool breaks the 2 second rule". If you get to the stationary object before you finish that phrase, then you are following too close. It takes 2 second to say that and if the road condition is poor e.g. wet or loose surface then double that time i.e. say it twice.



Let's say you overtake a slower vehicle on a dual carriageway, how soon should you pull over in front of it? Well you really want to leave a 2 second gap again; but how to measure that? The easiest way is to carry on until you see BOTH headlight come into you internal mirror - works every time.


Drive safely and take care especially just after you pass.

Today's Tip For Eco Friendly Driving

Air conditioning increases fuel consumption by around 10%, so it is usually more cost effective to open a window. However, at higher speeds of 50mph or above, the additional drag caused by having a window open begins to approach the cost of the aircon.

Watch out for more tips soon and don't forget to check out the websites for special offers.

Hazard Perception Test

The Driving Standards Agency's car driving test is conducted in 2 parts, theory and practical. The theory is split into questions and answers about road procedures, the law, traffic markings and signs etc and the hazard perception test.
The Q & A section is multiple choice with generally one correct answer to each question. This tests a new drivers knowledge about the subject and mostly can be learned from the Highway Code, other DSA publications, various commercial DVDs and web based resources. Encourage your friends and family to quiz your knowledge; both you and they may be surprised about each others competence.
The hazard perception test is often misunderstood, but put simply it tries to assess a new drivers ability to read the road, traffic and other road users intentions in a rapidly changing environment. A good driver will be planning ahead, observing and anticipating what other vehicles and pedestrians are doing, picking up on as many clues as possible to see a developing hazard as early as possible. So what is a developing hazard? Well let's start with a hazard! This can be as mundane as a parked car on the side of the road; this hazard develops if for instance another vehicle approaches and changes direction to overtake; it may further develop if the driver of the first car opens his door and the second vehicle has to swerve into the path of on coming traffic. So if you see a hazard, as simple as a junction or a zebra crossing; think "what could happen & how will it affect my intentions" as well as other users in the vicinity.

You need to pass both parts, but if you know your stuff it is not so hard. Time allowed for Q & A 57 minutes and you need to score at least 43 out of 50.

There are 14 video clips in the HPT and you need to score 44 out of 75. Check out this video that surprised me and hammers the perception point home.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47LCLoidJh4

Pass Direct provide quality driving lessons at affordable prices