Driving lessons after driving for 20yrs?

Herzlos

DoaM said:

Actually, if you expand on your point ... the proportion of nutters may well be the same as aeons ago, it's just that there are far more vehicles on the road now so this proportion represents a far greater number of people/cars, thus they are more noticeable.

I think that's it. When the roads were quieter (and I've noticed it in the last 20 years), the terrible drivers were still there but without anyone seeing or being so close to them. Now roads are busier they don't have the same free space to be terrible in

Sandtree

Biggus_Dickus said:
 Hope the last few pages haven’t put you off motorways forever. They remain the safest of all our roads. 

Depends on how you measure it... much lower rate of incidents but much higher consequences when incidents do occur... if you measure usage by distance travelled they represent 21% of road use but only 3% of known accidents... never heard of a 100 vehicle pileup on an urban road.

Fatalities are not actually that disproportionately higher but thats more to do with most fatalities are people not in cars which you clearly don't get as much of on motorways

Apintplease

Id definitely go for it

I remember many moons ago, meeting up with some people ( we were on a meet of dog walkers ) and chatting to one lass ( 30s -40's) who admitted she didn't do right hand turns or use motorways. I didn't drive at the time and thought sensible woman

When I learned to drive I could parallel park and reverse around a corner, first time, every time. Ive never done either manourver since and now its got to the point Im scared to even try them. Im very confident on motorways, slip roads, roundabouts and navigating in a city, but parking? Not a mission, I find a car park that will do and walk

If you haven't had experience, or much , of driving on motorways then I urge you to not only go get a few lessons but to also get a trusted friend to come out with you a few times to get used to doing it. I know when we have to move into a town or village, Im going to get some refresher lessons on parallel parking 

williamgriffin

Sandtree said:

Biggus_Dickus said:
 Hope the last few pages haven’t put you off motorways forever. They remain the safest of all our roads. 

Depends on how you measure it... much lower rate of incidents but much higher consequences when incidents do occur... if you measure usage by distance travelled they represent 21% of road use but only 3% of known accidents... never heard of a 100 vehicle pileup on an urban road.

Fatalities are not actually that disproportionately higher but thats more to do with most fatalities are people not in cars which you clearly don't get as much of on motorways

Can you back your claims up?

AdrianC

Apintplease said:

I remember many moons ago, meeting up with some people ( we were on a meet of dog walkers ) and chatting to one lass ( 30s -40's) who admitted she didn't do right hand turns or use motorways. I didn't drive at the time and thought sensible woman

I used to work with somebody (probably 50s) who was utterly distraught when our little satellite office moved in with the head office in the next town, less than 5 miles away.

She'd never driven there, didn't know how to get there, and didn't like turning right.
So she resigned from a job she swore she loved.

She was even briefly considering a constructive dismissal claim...

Apintplease

AdrianC said:

Apintplease said:

I remember many moons ago, meeting up with some people ( we were on a meet of dog walkers ) and chatting to one lass ( 30s -40's) who admitted she didn't do right hand turns or use motorways. I didn't drive at the time and thought sensible woman

I used to work with somebody (probably 50s) who was utterly distraught when our little satellite office moved in with the head office in the next town, less than 5 miles away.

She'd never driven there, didn't know how to get there, and didn't like turning right.
So she resigned from a job she swore she loved.

She was even briefly considering a constructive dismissal claim...

Its amazing how many people who don't do "complicated driving"

We have a roundabout near me, heading into the town, the coast, local traffic and further afield. It has traffic lights on all 5 junctions, all lanes are clearly marked with both road markings and sign markings at least 100 metres before getting to it so for me, a relatively new driver, finds its the easiest roundabout ever. Yet I have friends and neighbours, of both sexes, who hate it

It's mini roundabouts I hate. Why not put in lights? lol

Biggus_Dickus

AdrianC said:

Apintplease said:

I remember many moons ago, meeting up with some people ( we were on a meet of dog walkers ) and chatting to one lass ( 30s -40's) who admitted she didn't do right hand turns or use motorways. I didn't drive at the time and thought sensible woman

I used to work with somebody (probably 50s) who was utterly distraught when our little satellite office moved in with the head office in the next town, less than 5 miles away.

She'd never driven there, didn't know how to get there, and didn't like turning right.
So she resigned from a job she swore she loved.

She was even briefly considering a constructive dismissal claim...

Nice one  ...God loves a trier!

Mercdriver

First thing I did when I passed my test 7 years ago was to face my fears straight away.  I was driving in central London within a week of passing my test.  No sense overthinking things, that makes you hesitate which can be as dangerous as going in like a bull in a china shop

Biggus_Dickus

Mercdriver said:

First thing I did when I passed my test 7 years ago was to face my fears straight away.  I was driving in central London within a week of passing my test.  No sense overthinking things, that makes you hesitate which can be as dangerous as going in like a bull in a china shop

It’s the best way,...get in amongst them asap!

Your story reminded me of my daughter-in-laws’s youngest brother.

He passed his test when he was 21 and was saving hard for his own car but he had no access whatsoever to a car he could drive in the meantime. The upshot was that the first time he sat in the driver’s seat of any vehicle after passing his test was just over two years later when he got a new job.

On his second day he was told to drive the works van from the NorthWest to central London.

Thus, his first experience of motoring as a qualified driver (with a 2-year hiatus)  was a 200-mile trip to London...in a Transit Van!...talk about being chucked in at the deep-end.

I had to laugh when he related the saga.....instant ‘White Van Man’.

 

Sandtree

williamgriffin said:

Sandtree said:

Biggus_Dickus said:
 Hope the last few pages haven’t put you off motorways forever. They remain the safest of all our roads. 

Depends on how you measure it... much lower rate of incidents but much higher consequences when incidents do occur... if you measure usage by distance travelled they represent 21% of road use but only 3% of known accidents... never heard of a 100 vehicle pileup on an urban road.

Fatalities are not actually that disproportionately higher but thats more to do with most fatalities are people not in cars which you clearly don't get as much of on motorways

Can you back your claims up?

Yesterday I could have provided the sources for the statistics but didn't keep the windows open over night... I cannot backup the claim that I've never heard of a 100 car pile up on an urban road... you'd need to trust me on that one.