Being '30 something' and unable to drive....

Our circumstances change, perceptions and outlooks in general are forever evolving, and unless we take the trouble to specifically review something, the danger is it gets filed deep in the mind, under the heading ‘for another day’ – a day that never arrives.  Consider where you live.  You may have selected 10 years ago where you are living now for very good reasons that were appropriate to you and your life... 10 years ago.  

Things move on, and bringing little ones into the world means options of schooling in your area becomes an issue.  Consider your work.  Occupations change or develop and you may find that not being near a mainline train station is quite inconvenient.  It may be as simple as things that you considered to be tolerable 10 years ago, have just become quite intolerable as the years have marched on for example, noisy neighbours, or having a very small back garden, or not having broadband covered in your area.  My point is that things evolve, and unless we consciously pause, and review where we are and check that is where we want to be, then the danger is we just trundle along not reaching the levels of satisfaction that are very much achievable.                                        

And perhaps that is worth acknowledging from the start, change in our lifestyle is very often good, very often positive and to be encouraged.  Long gone are the days when we start a job at 17 and retire doing the same work 50 years later.  We are in an age where diversity rules, and having the courage to break free from ‘routine’ is very uplifting.  A good case in point is Zappo's the shoe people, no. 2 of their 10 core values is ‘embrace and drive change’ – their employees are positively encouraged to do things differently, break free from rigid processes and the benefits to their customers are plain to see.                             

We are all able to search in the Driving Standards Agency website for statistics on tests in the UK.  Randomly looking at the year Apr 2010 – Mar 2011 for example, shows that nationally 513,178 passed the practical test between the ages of 17 – 24, and yet a staggering 230,704 passed between the ages of 25 – 91 (yes, a chap of 91 passed his test that year – 3 cheers for him!  Spare a thought though for the poor chap of 95 who took the test and failed).  So if you are 25 or over, whilst you possibly may FEEL that you should have been driving many years ago, the statistics tend to indicate that you are by no means alone, over 30% of all test passes in that year were from 25 year olds and over. 

There are a whole variety of reasons why people don’t pass their test until later on in life.  At 17, 18 and 19 we are young adults and are busy ‘finding our feet’ in the world.  Some of us get engrossed in academic study which often entails moving to another part of the UK near to your College/University.  Being able to drive simply does not have the priority in your life.  Others are busy trying to find work, or taking further training for their work and that is the centre of their life for that period of time.  

For others it can be a problem of finance – not just affording to train with a Driving Instructor, but even if you were to pass, finding the money to buy a car and insure it can be just too difficult to achieve.  For example, as an absolute beginner, you can pay in the region of £650 - £1500 to train, you will pay about £1000 for a second hand small car, and a 17 year old can reasonably expect to pay 2-3 times that price to then insure the car for 1 year.  When you also consider fuel costs whereby a small car will cost about £50 to fill it up with fuel, then if you needed to do that once per week, that itself would cost £2600.  And then there are the maintenance costs for consumables like tyres and exhausts and then servicing and MOT costs.  All in all, for a 17 year old in year 1 of their driving life, they can reasonably expect to spend about £7000 to train, pass the test and then drive around.  Now that is a large expense and may go some way to explaining why people choose to leave learning to drive until later in their life. 

Other reasons can be to do with personal circumstances, such as living in an area where it is hard to find a Driving Instructor or Test Centre.  Conversely, some people live in areas where the public transport is actually extremely reliable, very frequent and reasonably cost efficient, which means that there is simply little need to drive.  Our upbringing can also have an effect on our desire to learn to drive; some have bad experiences of being a passenger involved in a nasty accident, some are subjected to poor driving standards by key people in their lives like parents or friends and those experiences literally put them off being in a car.  For some it comes down to their attitude to learning, maybe they had a bad experience of learning at school where they had issues with a Teacher or the teaching style, or maybe struggled with tests and as a consequence hate to take any kind of tests.  People can be frightened of failure, I’m not talking just about tests here, for some it troubles them that they may not be able to achieve, they may not be able to perform the necessary mental and physical skills required to drive.  There can be a whole raft of reasons for this, and all of them perfectly natural and valid.  The mind affects nerves, motivation, and let’s not forget your attitude to driving.  

There is no stigma attached to being 20 or 30 ‘something’ and not being able to drive, it is actually very common.  It is one thing considering how not being able to drive affects your pride but quite another to consider how it now affects your lifestyle.  Although it is very easy to immediately consider how it can improve your career prospects, and opens up opportunities for choosing where you live, sometimes the benefits are far more practical.  A Parent being able to CHOOSE to take the car on a school run when it is very cold or wet is no small ‘life changer’.

Having the ability to drive a sick child to an out of hours Doctor Surgery and pick up medicine out of hours is huge for a family with young ones.  Being able to fit so many more jobs in to your 24hr day will be fantastically liberating – they don’t always need to be routine tasks, some of these new options affect mood, health, relationships .... if you just ponder for a second how being able to drive will benefit a sport or hobby or interest you have, or how it will benefit you visiting and supporting an elderly Parent.

The fact that you have taken the trouble to read this blog is a sign that you are willing to consider ‘change’ – do not under estimate the power of your mind and how it makes you do the things you do.  Learning how to drive or fly or play an instrument or write creatively or sing or dance or play a sport involve learning new skills.  That is the kind of ‘change’ that you wont necessarily know you are missing; you often hear elderly people resenting the fact that they never fulfilled a lifelong desire for a certain activity.  They realise in their heart of hearts that they actually would have got so much success, reward and satisfaction if they had learnt this skill they have longed for all their life – which makes me think of our 95 yr old friend on the DVSA stats who clearly was trying to right this wrong in his life.

What you do have though that is worth celebrating is experience.  This is a key fact that differentiates you from a 17 year old who is wanting to learn to drive.   You will have a very good idea of learning styles that you like, in other words HOW you like to learn.  You will undoubtedly have experienced passing and failing in different walks of your life.  You will appreciate the importance of being ‘allowed’ to make mistakes in a safe environment, discover techniques for yourself that work for you personally.  You will very likely have had to identify a strategy to achieve a certain goal, and you appreciate that an open mind to learning can often be the difference between success and failure.   Consider the benefits of building relationships, and how open communication between important people around you is so incredibly important.   Think how your actions can affect others around you, and how important it is to be considerate to others.  

These are all very important lifeskills that will benefit you greatly when you learn to drive.  Attitudes, motivation, relationships, communication, learning styles – these are significant factors on the journey to becoming an independent driver.  Being able to see the connections and differences between driving lessons, the driving test, and how you then want to drive for the rest of your life is something that is aided with experience..... and experience you have!  

Another practical advantage of learning to drive later on in life is that the car insurance companies acknowledge that this experience you have will dramatically alter the chances of you being involved in an accident as compared to a 17 year old for example.  In general terms, the insurance premiums for a 26-35 year old newly qualified driver will be about a third of that for a 17 year old male for example – another cause for celebration.

To give balance to my point here I should point out that sometimes these experiences are perceived by some to hinder learning a new skill.  Self doubt can be quite corrosive in a learning environment.  Sometimes I’ve noticed that more experienced Learners can be too thoughtful for other road users around them, they are so conscious of not wanting to upset others that they are actually being too thoughtful and do not show enough assertiveness.  Likewise, some people have experienced poor driving over the years that really sticks in the mind – maybe speed related on a motorway, or an accident involving a vulnerable road user.  These experiences should not be considered as negative at all – being wise to the possibility of what can occur is a skill to celebrate not criticise.  Being alive to the risks, dangers and possible outcomes of poor driving is quite often what is seriously lacking in young male drivers, so do not be thinking that your ‘considered’ approach to driving is in any way negative.

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Driving Lessons in Peterborough.  Intensive Driving Course in Peterborough.


I pinged up on my Twitter ("tukkr") what looked like a nasty accident today - to warn drivers to avoid the area.  I had just finished some Driving Instructor Training in Peterborough, and was travelling North on the A15 when I saw a couple of cars that had just been in an accident at 'Kate's Bridge' near Thurlby - it's reported here and I very much hope that everyone concerned is not seriously injured.  I have witnessed many accidents in my time due to my work in a previous career, but it gets no easier to witness the immediate aftermath.

I see that they are widening the exit slip road leading to Boongate Roundabout which the Peterborough Evening Telegraph is describing here as the 'Worst accident blackspot'.  And that was where one of my ex-Learners (who was then a Full Licence Holder), was desperately unlucky to be at that precise location when a chap decided to drive out of slow moving traffic (backed up from Boongate Roundabout all the way up to the dual carraigeway), and in doing so created a pile up of several cars as he did not take adequate observations before making the lane change.  Despite her car actually flipping on to it's roof, I thank God that she actually survived with minor physical injuries (although the psychological injury will be substantial).

It's a fine balance between driving standards and road design (the A15 does seem to attract a lot of serious accidents though).  I personally find it very hard to remain calm when I hear 'academics' in road safety speak of expected levels of accidents.  I have had cause to contact Clair George (Road Safety Officer for Peterborough City Council) a few times for different reasons, and she has quoted to me 'normal' numbers of accidents for given volumes of traffic.

Take for example that short and very steep downhill entry slip road on Nene Parkway (a dual carraigeway) between the Holiday Inn hotel and Gordon Arms pub.  What a nightmare.  Drivers barge themselves on to the dual carraigeway (not giving way as they should), which forces many vehicles to veer into lane 2, and then if the poor driver wants to exit at the Gordon Arms exit, they have to then somehow find a way to get back to lane 1 having just been shoved in to lane 2.  If you want to literally see some footage of that happening in real life, just watch this video forward it to 2mins 20 secs and literally watch this 'barging' going on in real time.  That situation is not good for a few reasons:

1.  The vehicles on the steep downward slip road are actually gathering speed when they may very well need to be DECREASING speed to potentially give way to traffic in lanes 1 & 2.
2.  The elevated position on the slip road (coupled with shrubs/bushes/trees) makes it difficult for drivers to see vehicles already on the parkway.
3. The slip road is deceptively short which surprises many drivers on it.
4.  At night time the Council have a tendency to turn off lights on the dual carraigeway reducing visibility.

It must be said that if drivers were to inappropriately FORCE themselves on to the dual carriageway on their driving test, they would fail the test, so education/driving standards do have a part to play with this problem.

However, I asked the Council if they could just put up a sign or 2 on the entry slip reminding/emphasising drivers' obligation to 'give way' to traffic already on the dual carriageway - I was informed that EU policy dictated that far from increasing signage the Council were actively reducing signage.

When I asked why are the lights being switched off, I was told that not only is it 'greener' to have less light pollution (which is another EU directive), but it's cheaper for the Council too.

These entry/exit points on our dual carraigeways are very hazardous and there are actions (that need not be expensive) that could prevent some accidents.  

If you agree with any of the above and want to take positive action, then contact the Council, here are details of a variety of ways of doing that.  I also let the Evening Telegraph know, as I did here

What are your views on this blog?  Any comments please add below.


www.BIGTOM.org.uk

Can you change a flat tyre?

I make a point of asking my Learners on the BIG TOM Intensive Driving Course if they want to run through what to do if you have a flat tyre.

For an event that crops up fairly frequently it can cause a lot of anxiety.  There are many causes of a flat tyre, but a common one is driving over a nail.  Tyre pressure, tread depth and quality of tyre are important factors in the general safety offered from tyres.  Knowing you have a flat tyre is sometimes not as obvious as you might first think.  Not all of us can instinctively detect how a flat tyre affects the drive, and yet continuing to drive on a flat represents a significant lack of control in the car (as well as possibly causing more damage to the car).  Be a kind soul and make efforts to attract the attention of a driver if they are driving on a flat tyre - they literally may not know what is wrong.  The problem is it demands immediate attention, and as a consequence it will definitely affect your plans - very rarely does a flat tyre crop up when we are aimlessly driving round with very little to do!  I have a few tips for you:

1.  Do a dry run at home on a lazy Sunday afternoon while you are at home.  Dads and Grandads were made for this kind of thing!  They like nothing more than the opportunity to tinker around with the car. You can use the Operators Manual as a guide of course, but the beauty with having someone helping with some experience is that they will give you handy little tips along the way.

2.  Make sure your spare tyre is of the correct pressure - don't assume, actually check it.  While you are there, make sure you have all the necessary kit you would need.  Newer cars tend to put everything in a specific place, but older cars may not have this luxury.  One of the bonuses about doing a dry run at home, is that you can make sure you have everything.

3.  There can be a surprising amount of physical strength needed to change a tyre.  Nuts can seemingly be on solid, the wheels themselves are heavy, using the jack is tricky.  There's nothing like giving it a go to see whether you are able to do it.  If not, then there is no shame in that, but at least you now have that knowledge and can prepare properly should the situation arise.

4.  A few little extras you might want to consider carrying in the boot.  One of those knee pads that gardeners use, thin polystyrene pads, that you can put on the ground to kneel on.  May sound odd, but you only need to be somewhere that is muddy or wet or with lots of gravel and you will be pleased you thought of this.  A torch - flat tyres don't really care what time of day they feature in your life!  A 2L bottle of water has many uses, but in this case, will be handy to wash your hands after the job is done.

5.  If you are having no joy, or if you have a flat tyre in a hazardous location, then make sure you have a mobile (charged up) and your breakdown cover details.  There is nothing worse than having taken the precaution of buying breakdown cover, but the very time you need it, you don't have the telephone number.

6.  Think about your personal safety.  Do not wait in your car for instance on a motorway - vehicles can and do get completely wiped out.

  

When we go to breakdown garages and see the speed at which a tyre is replaced, we can easily underestimate how tricky it can be to replace a flat tyre when we are on the road.  You really should be preparing for this cropping up, it is a bit like windscreen damage - it happens.  Mention it to your Driving Instructor on your next driving lesson, or if you have passed your test, plan in a dry run at your home - you will not regret the time it takes.


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5 Reasons To Learn To Drive if you are over 25 years old

There are a variety of perfectly valid and understandable reasons why some people want to learn to drive slightly later in life.  Some perceive this ‘delay’ as a weakness, far from it, it is a strength!  Here are 5 reasons why:

1.       You will be more aware of how you prefer to learn, this will greatly improve the efficiency of your learning experience.... THAT ultimately saves you money.

2.       You will have had more experience of travelling on the roads.  This will greatly improve your understanding of what is required to drive safely, considerately and efficiently.... THAT ultimately saves you money.

3.       You will have more experience of effective communication – this will ensure your Driving Instructor is fully aware of your needs.... THAT ultimately saves you money.

4.       You are very likely to have a busy schedule which means that you will be fully motivated to make sure your training is as efficient as it could possibly be.... THAT ultimately saves you money.

5.       You will know from experience how important good preparation is for a learning experience, you are therefore more likely to embrace pre-course study material and this will improve the efficiency of your learning experience.... THAT ultimately saves you money.

The bonus of all this experience you bring is that the Car Insurance companies acknowledge what you already possess, and provide you with much cheaper insurance premiums as a result.

How can we help you achieve your goal?

Learning to drive on an Intensive Driving Course with BIG TOM Driving School will save you money, by providing you with an efficient learning experience and great value.

We will take the time to understand your needs and concerns, and this will be reflected in the training you receive.

You are provided with a pre-course video study list that enables you to be properly prepared.

Our core values include: We will turn up on time, the car will be cleaned inside before you drive, you will be treated with respect and courtesy, you will be fully supported throughout.

(In-car training in Peterborough, Cambs - Pick up/drop off @ Bus/Train Station for residents outside Peterborough)

Graeme (31 yrs) attended my Intensive Driving Course in Peterborough this is what he said afterwards..... "...I would like to thank Tom for taking time to teach me to drive last week on the BIG TOM Intensive Course.  Learnt so much and Tom really made me feel at ease with something I wasn't comfortable with to start with. I would highly recommend BIG TOM to anyone....."

Accidents - What To Do

  

As we never plan to have an accident, when it occurs it can be quite a shock, and when in shock, the mind can go blank on you - so you forget what you should and should not be doing.  The following are a few tips to remember if you find yourself in an accident.  The accidents I'm referring to here are what amounts to be the vast majority, little knocks here and there, bumps and scrapes, like the type in this photo here.  The more serious accidents which involve significant injury the emergency services will certainly attend, and you can be guided by them - the following is not intended for accidents on motorways.  

First thing to say is forget about trying to lay any blame on anyone, it is completely irrelevant, let the insurance companies do what we all pay for them to do.  As tempting as it may be, don't get yourself involved in arguing about who is to blame - there is more important stuff to be done.

The first priority to think is 'INJURY' - is anyone injured?  Anyone means in or outside of vehicles.  With kids in cars, they tend to start crying, but it's important to make efforts to see if they are injured (neck whiplash injury is very common).  If anyone is complaining of pain, get someone to call for an ambulance - they need to know the rough age of the person injured, male/female, and whether they are conscious and breathing.

Now think 'FURTHER INJURY' - can anyone get further injured?  Sometimes the position of the vehicles involved can be very hazardous, re-position the vehicles if possible and necessary.  Prevent people getting out of the vehicles and standing aimlessly in the road - they are causing a further hazard by doing so, and could easily cause another accident.  Can you smell petrol?  Can you hear an unusual noise from the engine?  Is there oil dripping on the road?  Is there a significant amount of broken glass or other vehicle debris that would cause a hazard for other drivers?  These are all factors that should help you to decide whether to stay in the car or stand away from it (but not in the road).  

You now need to exchange your details with the other driver.  If you have an adult passenger with you get them to assist you in two ways while you speak to the other driver.  Think witnesses - pedestrians nearby, drivers in other cars (write their registration numbers) - some people turn up having witnessed the accident - get their name and contact number.  Also consider taking a photo of the position of the cars if the cars have not been moved - by taking a photo on your camera phone, this could prove to be very beneficial to the insurance companies.  1 or 2 photo's is all that is being advised here.

When you speak to the other driver - you both have to exchange your names, address, the registration of the vehicles, who owns it, and insurers details.  Very few people have their insurance details to hand despite it being a legal requirement to give them in the case of injury accidents; so taking a copy of your policy when you receive it from the insurers and putting that copy in your glovebox is a good idea.  If while you are talking to the other driver you smell alcohol, or suspect drugs may be affecting him/her call the Police.  Also, if you rather suspect that the details that you have been provided with are false, call the Police.  It is a sad fact that there are drivers driving on our roads with no insurance at all - these people will probably want to provide you with false details so that you cannot trace them after the event.  A good guide to whether someone is doing things properly is the general condition of the car eg tyres, lights etc - check it out.  If the other driver concerned is not prepared to wait for the Police, this is yet another sign that all is not well.  Whilst I would not advise this if you are alone, if you can get a photo of their face before they get back in the car and leave that may prove to be very useful to the Police - do not put yourself in danger trying to do this though.

The vast majority of times, people are law abiding, helpful and supportive when an accident happens.  Most people are not able to give you all their insurance details at the scene of an accident, but are more than happy to give you lots of other personal information (inc. telephone number, email address), and in the vast majority of situations, this works perfectly well, without the need for involving the Police at all.

When you get home, you will call your insurers, and notify them of the situation - remember that the other drivers' insurers may contact yours direct without speaking to you personally.  In cases where the other driver was unable to provide you with any insurance details, I would advise that if neither you nor your Insurers have heard from the other driver by the next day - then ring your Insurers and ask them if they would advise you to call the Police.
  
So remember, I'm talking little bumps here, 'rear end shunts' where a vehicle behind bumps into the vehicle in front, often causing no more than bumper damage, a cracked registration plate, a cracked glass casing - the kind of stuff in these photo's.  Anything more serious, such as when you suspect someone's driving was dangerous or reckless, you suspect alcohol/drugs, anyone is injured, you don't believe the other driver is giving true details - call the emergency services.  Do remember (particularly if you are female and driving alone at the time) that although there is a legal requirement to stop and exchange details after an accident, you do not have to be a victim to further distress from the other party involved.  You can either call the Police immediately due to the other drivers unreasonable behaviour at the scene of an accident or the law allows you to report the accident within 24hrs to the Police.  

I would advise that if you are unable to call the Police immediately but feel that your safety is being threatened by the actions of another driver, leave the scene and go IMMEDIATELY to a Police Station to report it, then inform your Insurers.   


ACCIDENTS (minor only):

Think safety - is anyone injured?  Is there risk of further injury?  (petrol/oil/debris)
Re-position vehicles if needed to prevent further collisions.
Think witnesses.  Think 2 photo's - only if the vehicles have not moved.
Do not stand in the road.
Exchange driver name, address, registration of car, who owns the car, insurers details.   


Knowing what to do when an accident occurs is important and should be discussed on your Driving Lessons with your Driving Instructor.  The consequence of being unprepared for this situation is that you not only put your own safety in danger but you could also cause further hazards to others.

Applying the theory

You have to take care how you perceive things when you are learning to drive.

Take this for example, have a look at what the white paint means at a mini roundabout according to the Highway Code

http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/documents/digitalasset/dg_070563.pdf

It’s the 2^nd row down, furthest to right.  It says ‘give way to traffic from the right at a mini roundabout”.  Does it mean traffic from the right ON the roundabout, or does it mean traffic from the right approaching the roundabout?  Do all vehicles drive round the white spots of a mini roundabout as they should anyway – don’t many drive ‘over’ the white spot, if so, is that going to be from your right still? 

And anyway, when you consider the size of mini roundabouts, and consider how close the entry points from ANY direction is in relation to your car, do you not need to be mindful of anyone coming from any direction in case they suddenly sweep round across you?

Another example might be the position workmen put the red sign “If red light shows, wait HERE”.  Very often they put them much too close to the traffic light concerned, so that if you were to stop where it suggests you could be blocking oncoming traffic, or reducing your vision ahead of the roadworks and sometimes even the traffic light itself.

The right green filter arrow is a good one for a different reason.  With this, when it comes on we often see it and think, go, go, go!  Look what the Highway Code says:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/documents/digitalasset/dg_070561.pdf

“If the way is clear”...... 5 measly little words but absolutely massive when on the road.

My last example will be a friendly member of public.  The ones who are being kind and considerate and very understanding, so they start telling you to go as they are going to wait for you.  Take care!  They may be willing to wait for you, but look all around, it doesn’t mean everyone else around THEM feels the same way!

Getting used to making correct decisions when driving takes time, assessing what is right/wrong; as in life there are many shades of grey, and driving is much the same.  For sure, knowledge is power, it certainly does help to know your theory knowledge, but it is just that.... theoretical knowledge.  When we drive around, we need to appropriately apply that theoretical knowledge and remember that it is perfectly possible that there may be others on the road who either do not have that knowledge or choose to ignore it!  

Fatality stats - running v driving

My family attended the Great Eastern Run yesterday, it’s an annual ½ marathon running race, held in Peterborough, to generate funding for good causes.  My Wife ran it for the first time, and in a time of 1hr 50mins which she was pleased with.  It was a beautiful sunny morning, and a pleasure to see 4000 happy people going for a run and enjoying what they do.  The theme of this blog is the issue of safety by comparing stats in fatality rates between running and driving  (no offence is intended as a result, please be mindful of the sensitivity of this subject).

Last night, I saw a tweet come through from a reporter from the local evening newspaper, saying that a chap had collapsed on the finish line, and thankfully was successfully resuscitated by some nearby St Johns Ambulance volunteers.  I mentioned it to my Wife who said that she heard 2 people had collapsed on the day, but did not know the severity of either.   When she started to train with her local running club (Bourne) for this race, she told me that an established member collapsed and died while running, who was in his 40’s. 

I googled the race last night, and saw that in 2010, two runners died and 6 were taken to hospital with ‘serious’ conditions http://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/local/two-tragic-deaths-at-great-eastern-run-1-1546803    I can see from that article that the fatalities were the first since it started in 2006.  So it appears that in the 6 years it has been running, as a direct result of running in the race, there have been 2 deaths and the chap needing CPR yesterday.

While I was trying to find some information on the Bourne runner I noticed this entry of the sad death of a 42 yr old only last Sunday http://www.thisisderbyshire.co.uk/Ilkeston-fellrunner-42-dies-collapsing-run/story-17051251-detail/story.html 

It has got me thinking about fatality stats in running, compared to driving.  In driving the stats quoted tend to be a certain number for a given population, like this....   

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Transport_accident_statistics

In order to make any sense of the stats, I need to make sure I’m treating like with like.  As it is difficult to identify with any accuracy how many driving hours people do within the range of EU countries, it is difficult to say ‘x’ number of fatalities are occurring after an average of ‘y’ driving hours.   Very similar in the running world, for how many hours does the average ‘runner’ run? 

I appreciate that the following is very unscientific, but on the basis of my Wife’s finishing position yesterday and her time, let me assume for the sake of a starting point, that the average runner yesterday took 2.5hrs to complete the race.  Let me also assume that over the 6 races, 4000 runners have run on each one.  

That would suggest that 24,000 runners, running on average for 2.5hrs has caused 2 deaths – 60,000 running hours have resulted in 2 deaths, a death every 30,000 running hours.  If you were to join a running club of let’s say 20 members, and over a week each of you run for 2 hrs each, the club will consume 40 running hours per week – 2080 per year.   Whilst it might not be entirely accurate, at least you can begin to make some sense of the figures. 

Contrast this with driving.  How many hours do each of us on average drive for?  Even if I were able to identify a reasonably accurate figure, other than creating a stat of fatalities per average driving hours, what purpose would it serve when you consider the following quote from the above Eurostat link:

“The use of alcohol or drugs, the failure to observe speed limits, and the refusal to wear seatbelts are involved in about half of all road fatalities in the EU.” 

 I'm guessing that in the running world, this kind of 'causation' stat would be harder to identify?

A bright start to the day

Awoke this morning to some very positive feedback from a customer who recently attended my intensive driving course, what price do you put on feedback?  Either good or bad it is extremely useful to receive.... and very kind of people to take the time to give. 

Also slapped on the computer were a few post it notes of scribblings I wrote last night after watching a lecture from Paul Collard, Chief Executive of ‘Creativity Culture Education’ at the Scottish Learning Festival (I’ve pinged the link up on my Twitter if you are interested).

Included are things like..... ‘risk raises motivation’, ‘connect teaching with ethics/morals’, and “I moderate my learning behaviour according to the emotions that my Teacher is displaying”.  But I think my favourite bit was his talk about the global findings of PISA about comparing interest/confidence to test scores.  

The thrust of his message was challenging this desire to inflict ‘pain’ while learning in the interest of test scores, at the ultimate price of affecting the persons outlook on the subject for the rest of their life!  The compelling evidence contrasted achievements across the planet in grades but how they affected the wellbeing of the students.  

I could not help but draw comparisons about how we are teaching our young people to drive (or in some cases pass tests) and consider how ‘fit for purpose’ this training actually is for the rest of their driving lives. 

Ask a question, get an answer....... really?

My 7 yr old recently landed awkwardly on his wrist while fighting with his brother, and he has been struggling with it since.  After yet another interrupted night to have medicine for the pain, he went to school today with the plan to tell his Teacher if he was in pain.

After school he tells me that he put his hand up twice to tell his Teacher that his wrist was hurting, and twice he was told to lower it before he managed to get a word out.  We have been told on previous Parents evenings that he is fully engaged in Class and needs to learn to give others a chance to answer.  It seems that his willingness to ‘engage’ cost him dear today at school. 

I mention this because in my short time of being a Driving Instructor (3.5yrs), it strikes me that one of THE most crucial ingredients for a quality learning experience in the car is having an ‘engaged’ Learner.  Sure I can revert to simply telling my Learners how to drive, mindless instruction, do this, do that, now do this, now do that..... and yes, I can avoid accidents with this approach and my Learner can physically drive the car, but that would be all they would be doing – there would be no learning going on.

Generally speaking, in our world (which is governed by the DSA), we are tested on our ability to tell someone what to do - giving the reasons, prompt them what to do by way of subtle questioning, and in the process ‘transfer learning’ of how to drive.  Telling someone why an action is needed backed up by justification is not difficult, likewise thinking of asking questions that tests the level of understanding and ability to apply the actions by prompts and then ultimately independently is not overly difficult.  But what it assumes is that our Learners are going to ‘play ball’ and participate accordingly.  Of course, they don’t.  It is simply make believe world to assume that all Learners will willingly engage in this mode of instruction.  And here the trouble begins.  Because as nice as it is to have a kid or three in a class, shooting up their arm to answer Teachers question, we all know that there will also be a kid or three quite content to lay low, ‘under the radar’ so to speak. 

But I would suggest that having a young adult in a car that is unwilling to ‘engage’ can be quite a challenge.  And this is my problem with the DSA methodology.  On the tests for Trainee Driving Instructors the examiner will inevitably role-play a nervous Learner, or perhaps an arrogant Full Licence Holder, but you wont find them role playing someone who is unwilling to engage – basically if you conform with the levels of instruction mentioned above, the examiner will comply and miraculous 'learning' has taken place.

The challenge is accurately assessing if learning is taking place – I can understand why the DSA would want us to strive for that, I just don’t agree with the assumption of how they believe we should be testing it..... treating humans like robots is not clever. 

What makes matters even more curious, is how the DSA themselves assess Learners on the test.  When it comes to their testing whether learning has taken place, any concept of Q&A is lost without trace.  They just observe what happens, with no regard for ‘what if...’ or ‘why did you.....’.   The consequence of this approach to testing is that it is seemingly perfectly acceptable to condition Learners to do a certain action which has little sense attached to it, but merely undertaken to satisfy a ‘tick the box’ style of assessment.  The concern from my point of view would therefore be how willing that person would then be to carry on performing that seemingly senseless driving action that was needed only to pass the test.

I would very much welcome any comments/thoughts from other ADI's/PDI's on this subject.

Regional Stats

The following may be of interest to anyone training to be a Driving Instructor (or considering it) who may be monitoring my blog (according to the DSA there are 26 people on Trainee Licence’s in the ‘PE’ region as of 6/8/12).

The Office of National Statistics indicate that in the Local Authority of Peterborough (pop. 173,400 in 2010, projected 180,000 in 2012) there are 8,500 16-19yr olds.

The DSA  indicate that in the year 2011-2012 there were 4,125 practical tests undertaken by Peterborough Test Centre for 17,18 & 19 yr olds.   (In fact, for the age group of 17 – 25 yr olds, 17, 18 & 19 yr olds accounted for 70% of all tests in that year).

As the minimum age for taking the practical test for the vast majority is 17, then there does seem to be some broad correlation between the above two figures.

The DSA also indicate that as of 6/8/12 there are 610 registered Driving Instructors covering the ‘PE’ postcode. 

For the last 2 years, Peterborough Test Centre has conducted approx. 4000 car Learner tests for ‘first attempts’ per year.  The pass rate for ‘second attempts’ is marginally higher than that achieved by ‘first attempts’.

As such, in broad terms, on a yearly basis, there is a ratio of about 7 Learners to each Driving Instructor.  You can see that the supply dramatically exceeds demand in the region.   (Note that any paid driving instruction that is occurring by unregistered Instructors will only exacerbate this figure).   There will of course be re-tests due to the less than 50% national pass rate, and also there will be some hopping around by Learners from one Instructor to another.  The situation is further compounded by any promotions that are offered by Instructors to try to increase their slice of the above ratio.  This in turn further devalues the industry by contributing to the decline of income earned per Learner.

Watch me fluff this up good and proper!

Only intended as a bit of fun to show you all that I recognise there is SOOOO much being asked of you to do when you're having your driving sessions.  Sit back and relax, watch me make a complete mess of this!

Your Top 10 Questions:

I’m being asked questions all the time by Learners, I thought perhaps it might be useful to post up some of the more common ones:

Q.  Is there a ‘catch’ with all these deals that I can find on the internet for cheap driving lessons?

A.  I guess you have to question why someone would have the need to offer say 10 lessons for £99.  Ever thought about that?  If someone is providing a driving lesson at the rate of £9.90 per hour, then when you take out the price of fuel and other running costs for the car, that person may not even be earning minimum wage, do you think that will be an efficient learning environment?

Q.  How long does it take on average to learn to drive?

A.  The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) give these kind of stats on their website.  The problem with asking a Driving Instructor this question is that he/she may measure that stat in a different way to the next one you ask.  So you are therefore, not treating ‘like with like’.  Having said this, if you ask a Driving Instructor any questions that in any way measure their efficiency, AND the answer they give demonstrates that they clearly do not measure their performance, then that probably means they do not find that important.  Any question that YOU think is important, that a Driving Instructor cannot clearly answer for you, means that there is a potential mis-match in the importance you both place in that particular subject. 

Q.  How do you know when it is the right time to go to test?

A.  That depends on what your attitude is to learning how to drive.  Remember, you do not have to go to test in a Driving Instructors car – you do not even have to learn with a Driving Instructor.  The DSA provide a recommended ‘syllabus’ of the key skills of a driver, and as they are also conducting the tests – it would be wise to ensure your training reflects their syllabus.  The test standard in itself is not a particularly high standard, so it is important to consider from the start what you’re aiming to achieve.  Driving Instructors have differing opinions about this subject of when is the right time to go to test, speak to them about it, check that what he/she says falls in line with your expectations.

Q.  What is involved in the practical test?

A.  An eyesight test, a couple of questions on basic car maintenance, one manoeuvre, possibly an emergency stop (1 in 3 tests have one), and a 10 minute section where you drive completely independently with no verbal instruction from the Examiner.  The whole thing lasts about 38 minutes and costs around £60-£70 depending if you want the test on a Saturday or not.

Q.  Is it right to say that by passing the test, I’m perfectly safe on the roads?

A.  The insurance premiums for newly qualified drivers these days would tend to suggest not.  They are as high as they are, for good reason.  Whether you have the time, money and motivation to train to be a safe, efficient and considerate independent driver in any road conditions, in any weather, at any time of day/night is a matter for you.  It might be wise to consider if there are any differences in how you will be tested on your test day, compared to how you will then be wanting/needing to drive in the future. 

Q.  Do the Examiners have a certain quota of pass/fails that they need to meet by the end of the week?

A.  There is little evidence to suggest so.  Consider this, if that were to be true, then why are there such significant differences in pass rates between differing Test Centres up and down the UK?  The DSA provide stats on their website of pass/fail rates between Test Centres all over the UK – go check out your local ones and see what I mean.

Q.  On the Test will the Examiner use the brake if I’m going to have an accident?

A.  I would not count on it!  Their job in the car is to assess how ready you are to be given the right to drive alone on the public roads.  They are not there to prevent you from causing an accident or breaking the law with a traffic offence.

Q.  If I fail my test, will I have let down my Driving Instructor?

A.  That very much depends on your Driving Instructors attitude to pass rates.  Theoretically, failing a test means you will need more training, which will need to be paid for by you to your Driving Instructor, AND it will require another test which again the Driving Instructor will financially benefit from if you require to use his/her car.

Q.  Are these Intensive Courses a good idea?

A.  It depends on your personal circumstances.  What they do offer you is options.  Some people feel strongly that they do not provide the depth of learning that is required.  This very much depends on your attitude to exactly what is required.  If you are learning to drive to pass the test as required by the DSA then they offer a very real alternative option.

Q.  How do I know if a Driving Instructor is any good?

A.  How do you define good?  Patient, reliable, cheap, honest, fun, knowledgeable, thorough, happy, clean, highly qualified, professional, good value?   My advice would be to ask him/her to visit you and your Parents for a no-obligation meet where you can make this kind of assessment.  As a general rule, it should be less to do with price and more to do with recommendations from others.

Why are my gear changes not smooth?