Im watching dangerous drivers school and wandering how the hell these people get licenses? theres people with NO spacial awareness whatsoever, no idea what signs mean, why or when they should change gear, yet theyve passed the test.

Is it just me, or should the test be MUCH harder? there should be on track time before you go out onto the road where you learn what happens to a car on the limits of braking etc so people know how to handle it in an emergency stop, and it should be several full days of intensive driving.

I did a ride drive course last year and recon the standard test should be more like that.

maybe, just maybe, it would reduce congestion, accidents, road deaths, free up parking, reduce insurance costs and if you want to be green on it, itd reduce emissions.

or is that just logic?


ps. excuse the rant

[Edited on 8/5/12 by A1]

I agree mostly. But you shouldn't drive on public roads in a way that requires knowledge of how your car handles at it's limits. Most accidents come from a number of things that people mis-judge the risks of though.

Whilst I see what your saying the test is actually a lot harder than it ever was... This is not to say it can't be improved... Trouble is as soon as you walk out of the test center with the pass you can if you wish ignore every thing that you have "learned".

i wasnt meaning learn what the car does on its limits so you can drive on its limit, i mean so folk dont just freeze up and brake, so they know what happens and can avoid situations better.
one of the best things ive done is braking tests so you can get out and walk the distance it takes to stop from different speeds. would help stop chavs driving on your tail on a wet motorway...maybe.

I sort of agree with you but I don't think it would really help, as blue moon said they're likely to 'forget' everything the moment they've passed.

I personally think the driving age should be raised to 21 as all the stats show that teenagers are more likly to crash than people who pass thier test in their 20's. I think there should be a minimum amout of lesson time with a propper driving school. I know a few people who passed a driving test having only had about 10 hours of driving under the belt and all of them had accidents within months of passing.

Your biggest problem though with making the test harder as it does nothing to stop the people who already have driving lisences. I don't want to hijack but I'm going to have a bit of a rant myself now. I've had to go to canterbury a number of times this month and the road up there has lots of changes in the speed limit between 60, 50, 40 and sometimes even 30 and almost everytime I get stuck behind someone who seems to pay no attention to the speed limit at all and maintains a constant speed of about 45 to 50 the entire way. It goes something like this, I'm stuck behind them on a straight bit of road doing 45-50 in the 60 limit. I see the massive 40 signs so I ease off and slow to 40. At this point the car thats been holding me up dissapears into the distance. a few miles down the road the speed limit goes back to 60 so I speed up and whats roud the corner, the same car doing the same speed. To me that is a text book deffinition of driving with out care and attention. Either they are completely unaware of these limits (Which are clearly posted with massive signs and those signs that flash at you if your speeding) or they have absolutly no respect for the law and other motorists. The thing is though these aren't people who've recently passed a test, these are people who took a much easier test and probably the same people complaining about younger drivers (Of course that last bit is all asumptions).

Your photocard has to be renewed every 10 years now, why not have a short test to prove that you can still drive safely before they renew that licence?

Anyone brags about still having the paper one and I'll suggest they stop being valid

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Your photocard has to be renewed every 10 years now, why not have a short test to prove that you can still drive safely before they renew that licence?

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Even if you make the tests harder , you will still get someone who got lucky on the day of there test. For instance, my mother failed her test 6 times. Now I am not saying she cant drive, but there are people out there that failed the driving test countless times, but on one test they managed to pass. If you are good enough, it shouldn't take more than 4 attempts, and I think that's being generous.

It's the same as a lot of tests though, it's almost like the training is designed to get you through the test rather than to make you a competent driver.

I agree there should be an element of retesting, even sight tests would improve things no end. I know of far too many people who don't wear their glasses whilst driving.

Morcus got my biggest bugbear, those 'average' drivers. The main road near to me is a 40 after a 60, the amount of people who stay at 50 for the entire road is unreal. And I'm the one who gets flashed at by the driver behind when I slow down to 40.

As for younger drivers, I'm fairly certain that insurance companies will get younger drivers off the road, soon it'll just be too expensive to insure a car before 20. I've already heard of people paying 3-4000 for a years insurance when they pass their test, that's more than ten times what I pay and about three times what the car is worth!

For me, I wanted to pass my test asap. I took my test on my 17th birthday and passed,. That meant I could get out, find a job and earn a living to pay for the car, house, food etc. The thought of having to wait until I was 21 does not compute! I would be sat in a shop doorway, begging until I was old enough to drive. Perhaps a bit extreme but you see what I mean.
I'm all for the test consisting of the theory and road test and I'd also like to see some off-road skills testing. I don't mean trying to get your Fiat Panda round an off-road course, but a couple of hours manouvering around cones, into tight spaces and then some braking through cones at higher speeds. That sort of stuff. And some tuition on how to drive on motorways. Even if there are none close by, the same principals can be used on a dual carriageway.
And IMHO, the default response for any young person involved in a car accident is 'they were going too fast' which is often true, but for every young 'boy racer' I see, there are 20 middle-aged menaces who have taken a much easier test which was less relevant to todays driving, who drive badly. You'll see these pillocks sat in the 'overtaking lane*' on the motorway, tailgating another pillock, even though the 'slow lanes*' are empty. Then the same inconsiderate chumps will swerve across the road to dive up a slip road, still at 85mph............

I'd never consider myself a good driver but I'm confident I'm a safe driver. My SP30 suggests otherwise!

*Yes, I know the lanes are 'lane 1', 'Lane 2', 'Lane 3'.......

http://www.thecourier.co.uk/News/Angus/article/22610/angus-in-driving-seat-with-first-test-centres-based-at-supermarkets.html


Thats cause they get their licences from supermarkets


Just be glad you dont live in Africa where fraud on a huge scale has unleashed millions of drivers who never had any sort of test They bribed the officials and a licence was issued.
in just one province http://allafrica.com/stories/201109300504.html 1000 licences were cancelled.

As someone with a dissability that made taking a driving test much harder (A medically diagnosed problem of being locked in a small space with strangers which makes me physically sick) some of you are being a bit hard on people who have to take multiple tests, From my experience it seems your much more likly to have an accident if you only sat one test, especially if you sat that test just after your 17 so you might never have driven in anything other than dry day time.

Go out on the motorway and it isn't boy racers that you'll see doing stupid things, it's middle aged people company type cars, and lorry drivers who are supposedly proffessionals. Driving on the m4 last month through the 50 limit is probably the scariest thing I've ever done. I did what everyone should be doing, I slowed to 50 and moved into the first lane (Maybe not in that order) Then was overtaken by a huge number of lorry drivers who were not only ignoring the speed limit (I was doing just over 50 at this point) but tailgating each other and all this in rain so heavy you could barely see 30'.

I'd love to go off roading in a Panda, I've taken mine across fields and it's a real hoot, it would be really fun on a propper course.

I reckon a compulsory theory test every 5 or 10 years would be a useful way to re-educate drivers and improve driving standards. Particularly those who sit in the middle lane of the motorway, even though lane one is empty. And those who insist on switching on their fog lights in the rain, and those who tailgate at 70mph and those who don't indicate etc, etc. If they fail to pass after three attempts, their licence is revoked until they pass a full theory and practical test.

Right, that's all the BMW drivers sorted............ Only joking!........ (sort of... )

Phil

Re-testing isn't going to work though is it. We all know HOW to drive to the letter of the law, but rarely do. I could easily pass a driving test now that I'm not nervous, now I'm well used to car control, now I'm less overwhelmed by high traffic situations (I did pass first time at 17 after 13 lessons FWIW) but I know I don't always drive as I was taught, so all it would be is a quick reminder of the "silly" rules you have to work with to pass, then go back to your normal routine.

I know of driver/s whos eyesight is so poor they cant read a number plate at the proscribed difference.

Needless to say the high number of trashed cars is a dead give away......

[Edited on 10-5-12 by mangogrooveworkshop]

Then you should have reported them to the DVLA by now!

I contacted DVLA about Grandpa when he repeatedly bumped into things. He had been diagnosed with cancer and a combination of the treatment and his failing eyesight concerned the whole family. DVLA said that unless his licence was revolked by a court then they couldn't do anything. A doctor or the police could report him if they thought there was enough evidence to enforce it. They also pointed-out that as part of the conditions of your licence, you make a declaration that you are fit to drive, but unless you declare yourself unfit, then you can keep driving. Grandpa was still a practising GP so his doctor, who used to be Grandpas trainee, wasn't going to say anything!

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Originally posted by coyoteboy
Then you should have reported them to the DVLA by now!

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