Driving struggling big roads

Merlin139

What part of the country do you live in? Reason for asking is that if you are near large roads it may be easy for someone to suggest routes to take so you can practice driving where there are lots of lanes and big roundabouts. 

Try going out to these places at quiet times so its much easier to get used to them. As you get more confident in these places then try changing the times of the day to busier times. Maybe worth taking someone with you who is confident in these places to guide you in the right direction.

neilmcl

sim2335 said:

tommyedinburgh said:

If you have no problems on the road then why are you happy to seek assistance? 

I mean I only have problems on big roads with lots of lanes and big roundabouts.
Which I have to use now and again

i have no problems on roads I use on day to day basis.

Sounds to me you're lacking in two essential driving skills; observation and confidence. You can only achieve both with practice, a satnav will not help because all you'll end up doing is blindly following instructions without actually taking into account what's going on around you.

It might be helpful if you told us exactly which roads you were having issues with.

Mojisola

sim2335 said:

For example there’s one near my house, if  you in the wrong lane you end up straight on motorway there’s like 5/6 lanes on the same road  and roundabout it’s really hard to judge etc

Sometimes I have no choice but to use these routes to go to cousins etc,

Lucky my family been there or it’s late or early so no traffic.

Get some lessons and make sure you drive around the problem areas so the instructor can give you advice.

Routeplan using google earth so that you can see in advance which lanes you need to take. 

Get someone who is a confident driver to practice these routes again and again and again with you until you don't have to think about which lane to take.

ontheroad1970

Get someone you know to drive these sections with you in the passenger seat.  Look at the road ahead as if you are driving and make decisions in your head what you should do next.  Do it more and more times until you gain confidence to do it yourself with that person in the passenger seat, and then on your own.  This is a confidence issue that is harming your observations and you are getting over obsessed by it and overthinking it.  

[Deleted User]

Teapot55 said:

DB1904 said:

If you've not picked it up after five years then maybe drivings not for you. 

Not helpful, @DB1904. Please drive off and troll somewhere else. 

Totally subjective  😠

theoretica

For the one roundabout near your house you can memorise it.  Draw it out on paper, every single lane and work out which lanes  you want to be in and which go where.

For more general large road driving, I suggest getting some advanced driving lessons to concentrate on that. 

mgfvvc

If you cant select the right lane on major roundabouts and complex junctions then you need to upgrade your skills. As a minimum you need to learn to read the signs and the road markings. It sounds like you are relying too much on the sat nav. I would suggest finding a good driving instructor, explaining where you have problems and have him/her take you out of your comfort zone, without the sat nav and guide you through lane selection.

Did you do pass plus or just the basic driving test? If you didn't do pass plus it may be worthwhile.

If you can do an advanced driving course to upgrade your skills and confidence all around that would be even better. Look at ROSPA or IAM.
Also I would recommend looking at the relevant YouTube videos from Ashley Neal.

zagfles

The biggest challenge with driving on multi-lane roads is making sure you're aware of cars around you in the other lanes. Making sure you have well adjusted mirrors to eliminate or at least vastly reduce blind spots will help and may increase your confidence, eg see this video (switch left and right round as it's American): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpFXTvmToiU

Grumpy_chap

It looks like the OP could benefit from some refresher lessons to boost their skills and confidence.  Actually, most of us could, but most of us won't admit it.

The refresher lessons could also include some motorway driving tuition.  Even if the OP does not need to use motorways (or, presumably, trunk A-roads which are essentially the same) frequently, they are imposing uneccessary restrictions on themselves.  Plus, main roads are statistically safer for the experienced driver.

The driving instructor could take the OP to the specific locations that are a concern presently.

Jaybee_16

It would be worth investing in further lessons to focus on the problems described by the OP. Secondly, go over the route when the roads are quieter and keep practicing that route until you are confident about the correct lane to be in and correct exit from the roundabout.