How's my driving?
iPM is the programme that starts with its listeners...and what they want to talk about.
A while back on the programme we spoke about the driving skills of people over 70, and what the law requires them to do. This morning's Daily Telegraph has news of a much more wide-ranging change to driving rules. To read more about what the Telegraph is saying, click here.
Our coverage from August is here. Dozens of listeners and bloggers shared what they knew here.
Have a read and click on Comments to share what you know.
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OMG!
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I think a regular drivers vision check is a good idea.
Perhaps a formal report signed by a professional who knows a bit about eyes. (optometrist/ consultant etc). There would have to be a fee involved and probaly paid by the licence holder not he DVLA.
Though saying that the DVLA pays for specific, more specilaised assessments for drivers. e.g visual fields.
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My 92 year old mother, still driving short distances locally, arranges to be tested by a driving instructor at regular intervals just to make sure she is still safe. So far so good!
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One of the many problems with our government is its insularity of thinking. It seems unable to look to other countries for examples of good practice and adopting them, preferring to believe that it alone has all the answers.
Back in August a blogger wrote about P Plates. He may have been aware of Australian practice.
I must be one of the very few people to have taken a driving test 4 times and passed three of them. The way it came about was this;
I passed my first driving test in Australia in 1969. Prior to my passing I held a learner's permit. On passing I was upgraded to a provisional licence, which came with many conditions, one of which was that I was not permitted to exceed 40mph anywhere anytime. I was caught doing exactly that and lost my provisional licence for 3 months after which I had to take another test, which I again passed.
A year went by without incident and I was duly awarded a full license, on which I drove for about 12 years.
On returning to this country I was informed that I needed to sit a test for a British licence. Supremely confident, I didn't bother with refresher lessons, and, of course, failed. back to the drawing board - another pass.
This was all a damned nuisance at the time, but I later recognised the merits of the Australian system and would commend it.
We lose our skills over time, or rather we become very careless and easily distracted. I recently opted out of driving altogether - what pleasure does it hold? I walk and I catch buses. In doing so I have the time and space to observe drivers. One can see quite a lot from the top seat of a bus, and the number of occasions I have witnessed drivers texting and phoning whilst driving is truly scary. But the offenders are not older people.
There needs to be a balanced argument before amending current legislation, but reading into the newspaper article I denote the embryo of yet another stealth tax - clearly not the way to progression and safer roads.
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I did once try driving round a field in Suffolk about 35 years ago. Didn't like it so never tried again.
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I once again have a feeling of being out of step with the world,
Being retired and not having the need or wish to drive any more. I decided that I would sell my car and give up driving. After all, what pleasure is there in driving on overcrowded roads with fellow drivers who are rushing about for a variety of reasons.
The speed of modern day society has not only made us all intolerant to others , but, in relationship to the majority of todays' drivers, the standard of driving is very poor.
Although the driving test is so much harder today than it was fifty years ago, today's drivers do not have the time to learn the many skills that are now needed to cope with modern day traffic. .
People of my age, unfortunately do not have the quick reactions and quick thinking that are now needed for modern day driving.
Now I travel by taxi to do my shopping, and use public transport for longer distances.
By being able to plan my travel and not just go down to shop for a bag of sugar or whatever on a whim,.... but being able to plan to do several things in one journey... proves not only to be very cost effective, but cuts my carbon footprint [modern day parlance]
No , now I will let the younger generations do the driving..... I've done over 50years behind the wheel. and ....I can live without it now.
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(4) Jester: As an Aussie, I agree entirely that the P plate system (a year on Probation) is a great one and do wish they would bring it in Europe wide.
One of the main advantages is that other drivers can immediately recognise a 'beginner' and drive cautiously around them, a bit as one does around an 'L' plate.
The other Aussie driving test benefit is that one has to learn how to reverse park a car as part of the test. So much better than reversing around a corner, as they do here. I've pointed out previously that it is a very silly and unsafe thing to be doing and is never done once the test is passed.
Spare a thought for those of us living across the Irish Sea - Ireland is the only country in the world where you can drive yourself unaccompanied to your driving test, fail it and drive yourself home.
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Lady Sue. Not entirely - I forgot to put the bit in about taking my first test in Britain. I was still on an international licence issued in Oz. I drove myself to the centre, failed, and drove home. Alone. And the bunny side of me was very displeased.
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ps Lady Sue. You may recall that the Oz government had the courage in 1981 to introduce random breath testing. It cost them thousands of votes and saved thousands of lives.
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(8) Jester: but you had passed a test in Oz, you must have done to get your international licence. In Ireland, WITHOUT having passed more than a written test, you can drive around alone. The government have recently brought in new legislation to ensure that someone who hasn't passed their practical test must have a someone with a full licence in the car with them but it is not really being enforced. It makes the roads here the most dangerous in Europe, or so I'm led to believe. It would be funny if it wasn't causing casualties and death, so I know I shouldn't be trying to make it amusing either...
(9) they also must have been one of the first countries to bring in compulsory wearing of seat belts too. I couldn't believe how people in this part of the world drove around without them for so long and claimed it was an infringement of their human rights to be made to wear one. So silly.
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Lady Sue. On a trekking holiday many years ago I became hopelessly lost. An elderly lady stopped to give me a lift to a bus stop. The car got a puncture and she didn't have a jack in the boot. Within 10 minutes we were surrounded by half a dozen tractors and ten farmers, all lending a hand.
They may be the most dangerous roads in Europe, but they're the friendliest!
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