ADI numbers in Peterborough as of 6/9/12

Just wanted to pass on to anyone interested the promise I  made in one of my last blogs about the Driving Instructor industry.  

I said I would give some info on the state of play in Peterborough compared to the rest of the UK (Peterborough being postcodes PE1,2,3,4,7).  

I can now happily reveal that information gained via a Freedom of Information request from the DSA:

Very interesting information.  There are 138 of us registered (hoorah for us!)

This is how many of us have come and gone over the last 4 yrs:

Year	Number of ADI's Removed	Number of ADI's added
2008/09	9	10
2009/10	2	3
2010/11	2	7
2011/12	5	3
2012/13	2	0

As with all stats there are conditions with the above but it does give a general trend.

Can I welcome the 23 who have been in business since 2008 (Oh that includes ME!)

I can’t welcome anyone who has qualified since April 2012 as it is 0  (and yes this info is correct as of 6/9/12 - take note, that is 6 months!)

The above does need some qualifying.  There will be many ADI’s out there who are very successful, very happy, and doing very well... I personally have just had the busiest 9 months since starting up in May 2009.  So all is not lost..... this is a VERY important message.

However, if you look at the above stats, and the stats that I have previously given in other recent blogs, you will see, that times are hard – much like other business sectors in the rest of the UK.

Any questions – as ever, please ping over to me.... I will always reply.

A test pass de-brief to take note of.

One of my pupils had the practical test on Friday just gone, and the de-brief was quite unusual – thought I’d give a few details here for the benefit of others.

I saw the car come back into the Test Centre and the last thing done was the reverse bay park manoeuvre which was very good.  I then strolled back to the car, and as I approached my Learner got out the drivers seat with a big smile, thumb up sign, and got his driving licence from the back seat. When I got in the car, the examiner confirmed the pass and added a remark that at times the speed was too slow but that he gave a lifeline of something like:

“Isn’t it so annoying when drivers drive too slow for the conditions?”

My Learner apparently took the hint.  

Then the conversation went like this:

Examiner “And what was that all about with the Taxi driver shouting at you?”

Pupil “I know I thought I’d failed then to be honest”

Examiner “Why? What had you done wrong?”

Pupil “I don’t know, was my position wrong?”

Examiner “No your position was fine.”  He turned to me, and said “Basically what happened was we got to that ‘T’ junction over there at the very start, and as we approached quite slowly, which by the way I don’t blame you for at all, a Taxi driver was turning right into our road, I think he mis-interpreted the slowness of our vehicle as being a sign that we were going to pause before the give way lines.  As such he cut the corner on the right turn, but realised when he came across us, that we were not pausing at the give ways, and so he shouted out a few abusive remarks.  It was fine, I’ve recorded it as a driving fault, only because we have to take care how things can be interpreted and be able to adapt, but it was fine – it would have been harsh to give a 'serious' for that, I take the whole drive into account which I felt very comfortable with”.

A big well done to my Learner, to have that incident thrown at him at such an early stage in the Test, especially as he was concerned he had failed the Test as a result.

 

There are a couple of good lessons to learn from that incident:

When we drive around, we must be ‘alive’ and prepared to anticipate the poorest of driving around us.  So, people cutting across us, people doing dangerous overtakes, people leaving signals on or not putting one on, people being in the wrong lane on a r/b, people forcing themselves on us in meeting situations...... etc.  If we are mentally anticipating these things, then when it happens, it isn’t a surprise as we’ve already planned it in.

Don’t give up on a Test, no matter what happens, keep going, persevere.  I’ve only ever known people pass that I thought should have been a fail, I’ve never known anyone fail when I thought it should have been a pass.  So keep going no matter what crops up.

Ignore other road user’s abuse.  They are often in the wrong, and don’t even know it.  So shouting, hand signals, flashing headlights, using the horn, tailgating..... ignore it all.  Don’t respond, or retaliate no matter how you perceive the situation, it literally isn’t worth it.

Another comment I’ll make on that de-brief is the Examiner commended my Learner for talking to him.  They generally do like it, they are not mind readers, so knowing what a Learner is thinking or considering is good when you are driving to a good standard.  They do this job all day, so they will always appreciate interaction rather than stone cold silence.  Don’t get me wrong I’m not making this comment with the idea of this making a difference to a pass/fail, as it happens the Learner above passed with 3 minors (1 of which was the Taxi incident).  If you have been trained to a good standard, it comes out in the driving, no amount of chatter can substitute poor driving, but when you are making judgement calls, and observing how others affect you when driving, the Examiner cannot possibly read your mind.

Last thing to say.  Before the test, literally about 5 minutes before the test, I said to my Learner that generally speaking people can fall into a trap on test, some drive far too slowly in the hope that they are ‘hedging their bets’ and minimising risk, or, they will drive too fast, trying to impress perhaps, or possibly due to test nerves.  I said very clearly, we want neither of those, what we want is driving to the conditions in front of you.  I gave a couple of examples of differing situations that affect speed.  And despite that, it appears from the de-brief that my Learner was initially driving too slow.  This is worth emphasising to all Learners reading this – an Examiner will not like you driving continually too slow for the conditions.  They really, really wont like it.  Once you pass, you try sitting behind someone doing 15 in a 30 all the time, it will drive you mad.  I gave a real example of this problem in this blog not so long ago, where I and several others were sat behind an old lady doing 40 in a 60 – it is mighty dangerous as people generally get seriously naffed off with it and can start doing dodgy overtakes.  My Learner was lucky on this occasion, the Examiner made a comment, and my Learner realised what the message was.

But the lesson here is the Examiner was not obliged to say a word, and could easily have chosen to say nothing, and then have given a fail for that speed issue, so be warned everyone.      

This is a 'motorbike' day

Looking out the window this morning, I see a beautiful day is ahead of us, this seems to me to be a superb day for golf, and a superb day for riding a motorbike, neither of which I do.

 

Yesterday my Wife witnessed the immediate aftermath of a horrific collision involving a motorbike.  It was on the Bourges Boulevard road heading out of Peterborough City Centre, just when you get to that stretch of road nr Argos.  The collision appeared to have happened where those traffic lights are.  Those lights serve 2 purposes: they allow pedestrians to cross an extremely busy road, and it allows buses only leaving Lincoln Road to go on to Bourges Boulevard. 

My Wife and all vehicles in her vicinity came to halt on that stretch just before the lights, and witnessed a helicopter landing on that road – which seems to me to be an incredible achievement from the pilot.  The general consensus from all drivers around her was that the motorbike rider had been ‘side swiped’.   Now when you think about it, the only way, and I really do mean the ONLY way that a motorbike could be wiped out from the side at that location, is if the rider (or the other vehicle concerned) was coming out of that stretch of road, which is for buses only.  When there is a bus waiting to come on (held on a red light), the lights on Bourges Boulevard eventually go red (that stretch of road is 40 by the way), and then the bus can safely come across both carriages of the dual carriageway.  So what could have gone wrong?  The motorbike may have ignored his amber/red light while travelling on Bourges Boulevard.  He may have tried to follow a bus through, and went on a recently changed amber or even red.  He may even have had a green light, and a vehicle on Bourges Boulevard carried on through an amber or even red.  There’s loads of possibilities. 

I fairly recently provided some training for a chap who rides a meaty motorbike, and wanted to have the option of being able to drive a car (so he can carry around equipment for his work).  There is no doubt that his attitude to driving had to dramatically change to cater for the size of the car compared to his motorbike and also the lesser power of the car compared to his motorbike.  

Only yesterday I was driving towards Peterborough and saw 2 motorbikes together that were in my view, riding really dangerously – the overtakes they were doing were quite frankly mad.  The thing is, you could be the best motorbike rider in the world, but if you have a momentary lapse, and do not cater for the worst car driver in the world then that is all it needs for it to be curtains for you.  But my point is, if you are normally riding around taking those risks just as a matter of course, then the odds are slowly but surely stacking against you. 

So take a day like today.  A beautiful day.  Let’s say, as a motorbike rider, you decide to meet up with a mate or 2, and do a ride that takes a few hours.  And let’s say in that journey you take, you overtake 70 vehicles... let’s just say 70.   Now, 60 of them may well have been low risk (no oncoming vehicles, plenty of room around you), but 5 were medium risk (there were oncoming vehicles, but you just managed to make it), and 5 were positively high risk (after the journey, these are the ones that stuck out in your mind).  Now those 5 dodgy overtakes will have got the adrenalin running alright.  They will have spooked the other road users around you (both the vehicle you overtook and the oncoming vehicle that narrowly missed you).  Thankfully, more through other peoples actions than your actions, today, you live to tell the story.  Unbeknown to you, the oncoming vehicle braked really, really hard to allow you to make it.  Or thankfully, the car you were overtaking, suddenly and dramatically veered to the left so that you were able to squeeze in right at the last minute.  But the point is, you were not in control of that situation.  So your life was in the hands of other road users, not a good place to be – there are some poor drivers out there.

I’m not deliberately trying to be controversial here, but riding round and effectively shortening those odds each time you do one of those dodgy overtakes is really not clever.       

Forming Good Driving Habits

Part 2 v Learner Test Standards

Had an interesting mock test with a PDI today.  This is the ‘Part 2’ Test that Trainee Driving Instructors take.  ‘Part 1’ is based on the Theory Test, ‘Part 2’ is driving ability, and ‘Part 3’ is teaching ability.

I’m often asked, “What is the difference between the standard of the Learner Test compared to Part 2?”

Let me go over some of the stuff that came up today by way of explanation.

Seeing where progress can be made up ahead is a key skill.  Negotiating our way round roundabouts, and travelling along dual carriageways where we take the path of least resistance are good examples.  By that I mean, rather than taking a path that has lots of stop/starts, or getting yourself blocked in - instead you are able to identify these bottle necks and plan in a path of travel that means you make more progress.  This is not to be confused with speeding/racing, far from it – instead, it is not ‘boxing clever’ but ‘driving clever’.  It is shown in other ways too, how a driver negotiates a bus paused at a bus stop, and how a driver manages meeting situations (parked cars on one or both sides of the road), also how drivers emerge from junctions and deal with traffic lights can show if the brain is thinking about ‘making progress’. 

Showing consideration to other road users is another difference.  Some examples include, if you are travelling on a road with 2+ lanes in the same direction of travel and you can see drivers up ahead waiting to get on to your road; being willing/able to move over to let them on.  Identifying when a cyclist will need to swerve a pot-hole and giving them the opportunity to safely do that.  Realising when a motorcyclist wants to overtake behind you, and being willing to move slightly over to the left to assist that.  Providing the safe opportunity for a vehicle to turn across you so that the vehicles behind it can then move on.  Seeing a large puddle on the road and preventing splashing pedestrians on the footpath.  Safely accommodating a large HGV that is doing an exit from a r/b in clearly the wrong lane.   

Driving in such a way that is eco-driving is always good to see.  So seeing up ahead a long stretch of road in a 40 and driving in 5^th gear, or in a 30 and driving in 4^th gear.  Keeping gear changes to a minimum.    Avoiding heavy gas/braking shows that you are planning well ahead.  Keeping the wheels rolling so that moving off in 1^st is reduced.

Performing manoeuvres effectively and efficiently, so as to reduce affecting other road users but still being safe.  (All the 5 manoeuvres will be in the Part 2 Test inc. right reverse).

The general standard is higher for the Part 2 as there are less ‘minor’ driving faults allowed.  But more than that, minor positional errors, or minor glitches in control of the car would be frowned upon.  So precise lane positioning, accurate assessment of gear for speed, complete control on a hill start and well timed signals are all examples of the higher standard.    

Hot off the press

I did promise in my ‘Gove Shake Up’ blog to substantiate my claim that our industry is in nose-dive.

Hot off the press from the DSA (literally end of August) are some stats:

 http://www.dft.gov.uk/statistics/tables/ins0101

You always have to take care with stats but I think you’ll agree there is a ‘theme’ to their message.

If the April – June 2012 trend continues as it currently shows, then PDI applications into the DSA will be about 13% down in 2012 compared to 2011.  The pink Trainee Licence will be 30% down.  New ADI’s registering with them will be 34% down.

Take a look at this FOI request back in Aug 2009: http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/adi_related_statistic

and it puts things in perspective.  In Sept 2009 there were 45,371 ADI’s on the books compared to 46,313 in June 2012, despite that being an increase, it does seem that the number is now on a downward trend.  But look at the number of new ADI’s registering over the last few years:

2004 5056

2005 5200

2006 6177

2007 5714

2008 4659

And 2011 3339      

The number for the last 6 months that the DSA have figures on (from Jan12 – Jun12) shows 1246!  So it seems the number of ADI’s registering is currently in freefall.

You can see by looking at this:  http://www.dft.gov.uk/statistics/tables/drt0721/ 

that the number of attempts at Part 3 have dramatically fallen.  In 2008/9 there were 13,427 attempts, it’s looking like half that amount in 2012 at around 6808.

All of this is of interest to me but I will bung up some stats of what’s going on in Peterborough too, just to put my region in context with the national picture. 

Bay Parking

The manoeuvre of the reverse bay park is very probably the most used out of the 5, it crops up often.

Reversing into a bay with parked cars on either side of your intended bay is easier to steer into because your movable wheels are your front wheels, so it is easier to accurately steer the rear end in first.  Contrast this with driving in forwards into a tight bay park, inevitably you can’t ‘swing’ the front round enough (due to the parked cars next to you), which often results in some shunts back and forward.  This is the reason why when reversing you get more accuracy in your steering/position, it is why we reverse parallel park rather than trying to go in forwards.  The rear wheels are fixed (don't move) so use the moveable front wheels to get the rear wheels where you want them.

Another bonus of reversing into a bay is that when it comes to driving off again, your vision is so much better – you stand much more chance of spotting a little toddler in a car park when you drive forwards out of a bay, rather than reversing out.  It’s a little bit like parking on the right side of the road, behind a vehicle, and then when you try to move off, you simply can’t see anything, so you have this rather uncomfortable need to very slowly ‘edge’ the front end out hoping that by doing so, other oncoming drivers will see you and not plough into your nearside front (consider also how you affect oncoming cyclists/motorcyclists when you ‘edge’ out like this).

There is one advantage of driving forwards into a bay however, and that is the boot is more accessible.  If you reverse in, and your car is surrounded by vehicles, when it comes to loading up the boot, you may have a job on your hands getting the supermarket trolley near to the boot.

And this would be my first bit of advice to you when it comes to bay parking – choose well your area to park.  It is infuriating when you return to your car to find dents here and scratches there.  Make sure there is enough room each side of your vehicle to open doors and physically get out – when you have little ones in your car, teach them to respect other people’s property and take care when opening the door not to slam it into a nearby car.   Not everyone has the same attitude to their car, I have seen drivers literally shunting a vehicle from behind in order to get into a tight spot when parallel parking.  Likewise with bay parking, some people do not give a hoot about other people’s bodywork, and will bang the door into it without a second thought. 

Another consideration is cctv cameras – they are very commonly found in car parks now days.  Whilst I can’t guarantee it, a cctv camera covering where your car is parked may be the difference between your car and someone else’s getting broken into.  It’s worth a thought, especially if you are leaving your car there a while.

Try to be respectful of parking bays for disabled or families.  Both need more space for buggies and wheel chairs.  It is irresponsible to use their bays simply because they are free.  Maybe not now, but one day, you may well need to use them yourself, and will be grateful for the understanding of others.  How we drive, our attitude to others, speaks volumes about our personality.  

Which brings me on to the next point which is ‘road rage’ in car parks; very common.  Most people want to park as close to the building entrance as possible and will make a direct line for a bay even before it has been vacated.  A common cause of insurance claims (and disputes) is when drivers ‘nip in’ to parking bays, with no regard to other vehicles nearby.  Treating your car like a battering ram to get where you want, come what may, is not just going to increase your insurance claims but when you come across someone with the same attitude one day, then it can lead to some unpleasant scenes.

In multi-storey car parks, having your dipped headlights on is sensible, as they tend to be quite dark.  Take care when you pull up to the ticket machine, it’s a little like a ‘drive through’ at a fast food chain (look at the small gap in this photo at a McDonalds Drive Thru), or the coin box at Toll roads; concrete/metal posts nearby have been put there for a reason – drivers approach too quickly, and as such, lose position which can easily result in a collision.  Actually going up and down these car parks is no small thing, and Learners would do well to practice it on a driving lesson – otherwise you pass your test and then get a rather uncomfortable feeling as you find yourself stopped on an upward ramp, between levels of a multi-storey car park ..... not nice.   

Here is a video from my YouTube channel “2010BIGTOM” about the test standard for this manoeuvre - http://youtu.be/DnS1RyzMF6E.  The method you adopt is a personal thing, but my advice would be to take the time and effort and to find an Instructor who can assist you in really nailing this.  It is a very common manoeuvre that we use daily, and it is sad to hear people saying that they hate bay parking as they never felt like they sussed out how to do it.

Despite the slow speeds used in car parks (most have speed signs up of 5/10/20mph), they are hazardous places.  Parents are very often distracted momentarily loading cars, or getting buggies out or trying to find keys in bags etc, and a little 4 yr old can wander off surprisingly quickly.  It is very important to physically turn and look when reversing in car parks, simply looking in mirrors is never going to be enough – the field of vision (range) in mirrors is restricted (especially with parked cars nearby) and they have ‘blindspots’ remember.  It’s a pain, it’s uncomfortable, it’s awkward but shift yourself round and physically look in the direction you are travelling....... it could save a kids life one day.     
So the guy on the left will not pass his test as he is not looking out the rear windscreen, the guy on the right would.

Hope this is a help to you!  Please do grade this blog, feedback is important to me, let's me know if they are of use.  As ever, any questions you have on this subject, ping it here for not only you to get an answer, but also others reading this blog.

A 'Gove Shake Up'

It seems Michael Gove is never far away from the headlines these days.  ‘These days’ could justifiably be replaced with weeks or even months.  Although I don’t personally appreciate the manner in which he tampers with our education system it must be said the ‘shake up’ that he instigates is not always necessarily bad; often it can be catastrophic, granted, but it’s not always bad.

When we went down to the Olympic Park and saw what an atmosphere the volunteers were able to create it certainly opened my eyes.  When the Police attend large events, the atmosphere within the ranks is at best described as subdued, but realistically borders on ‘numbing’.   Officers often don’t want to be there for a whole variety of reasons; having their leave cancelled, being in company with other colleagues they would rather not, having no interest whatsoever with the event they are attending, having little to do at the event (literally being bored) – there can be many reasons.  But, all said and done, at least they are being paid for their attendance, and paid rather well.  And yet, at the Olympics there were all these volunteers, giving up not just their time at the event, but also to do the required training pre-event, and their contribution to the Games was outstanding.

It seems that we are in times where the rock solid jobs, where people so frequently become institutionalised in their comfort of knowing they will never lose their job are looking over their shoulder.  Nurses, Police, Teachers, Dentists even Doctors (who would have imagined our Doctors would strike over their pensions) – everyone needs to be on their toes.  

Being a Driving Instructor or a Trainer of Driving Instructors would equally focus your mind these last few years.  When I took my training 5 years ago, the quality of training that I received was quite appalling.  I (the customer) was having to wait long periods of time for my training to fit into the schedule of the training provider (not the other way round), some training was done with 2 of us in the car (rather than 1:1), the syllabus of training was based around the tests only (no interest in providing training for life after qualifying), the Trainer had an air of complacency that was truly shocking.  But, in fairness to him, 5 years ago, it would be understandable why he was complacent.  There were many Trainee Driving Instructors coming into the industry – he and his organisation had the attitude of ‘put up’ or get lost, we have other customers waiting.  How times change though.  The industry has nose-dived since (I’ll pop up some figures shortly in another blog), his organisation went into administration, another national driving school also went into administration and things do not look so rosy.      

However you want to describe the reason(s) why these exam results just out don’t look so good, suddenly, the teaching world starts looking inwards a bit more.  The long stretch of years where exam results were improving year on year has ended, and because the stats show a negative this year, the spotlight goes on the schools.  The education world has been perfectly willing to hide behind the year on year increase in exam stats with not a care for how well the pupil can survive in employment.  Suddenly their comfort shield has been removed, they are exposed.  That culture of complacency is now going to bite.  

Before we left the area we lived last year, our Dentist had been through a period of time where she was formally requesting feedback from her customers and had to be seen to be working on that feedback – not ‘if she fancied it’ or ‘would she be kind enough to’.  The difference in the service provided was remarkable. 

If you find yourself really not enjoying your driving lessons, move on.  As a paying customer, you would do well to discover a provider that meets your needs, exactly, and then delivers on that.  Anything less......ditch him/her.  As banks have discovered over the recent years, the only loyalty demonstrated by customers will be from the older generation that have that mis-placed sense firmly ingrained in them – they will represent a small % of their customer base I suspect.

This culture of complacency can be seen in some DSA examiners.  The manner in which they conduct themselves in front of Learners and Driving Instructors sometimes leaves much to be desired.  As with the other occupations mentioned above, when there is a lack of alternative providers, then that complacency can breed fast within the ranks.  Who knows, perhaps one day the Government will realise how unhealthy this current set up is, and do a ‘Gove shake up’ that will loosen this DSA stranglehold.