AI Solutions: Dinosaur Driver Training

AI Solutions: Dinosaur Driver Training: I went to a meeting yesterday, supposedly with the echelons of the driver training industry. The movers and shakers. The people who me...

Dinosaur Driver Training

I went to a meeting yesterday, supposedly with the echelons of the driver training industry. The movers and shakers. The people who meet with the DVSA on behalf of the driving instructor industry and put forward the view of the ADI to then discover they have not moved with the times. As a coaching business we put forward a presentation and the most resistant members of the group were an organisation purporting to be the oldest, which was reflected in their attitude and behaviour. The younger members and those who understood the psychology behind the way we do things and why, were a different audience, whose interaction of the presentation was spoiled by ungentlemanly and down right rude behaviour, from the top of an association tree and two former DSA registrars chatting amongst themselves during all presentations from guest speakers. What hope is there for a modern test and serious acceptance of road safety, if those who are supposed to support it do not actually believe it.

Introducing something new is always a challenge and that is to be expected, but if the minds of some older road safety 'professionals' are stuck in the past, how can the ADI believe that their real wishes and understanding is being presented to the ministers. A point I have today raised with my MP.

It is true making changes within the world of road safety takes time, evidence of that is the fact it took SEVEN years after announcement of a change to the driving licence for this to actually come into force. Incidentally today. Maybe that is why we are now looking at a diluted driving test. It resembles the test of years gone by, with no interest in maneuvering the car and driving out of town. So how will a pupil once passed tackle the trials of driving in built up areas, turn the car around, a skill that is essential in all drivers, it is a fact that fatal accidents happen during this move by unskilled or unpracticed drivers. So with a driving test that would be laughable in most EU countries, how will that help road safety?

On being questioned about the new driving test a spokesman for the MSA said " I wouldn't get involved with this one" so how on Earth are driving instructors supposed to get proper representation when the providers of people power, don't believe in it?

A survey by Direct Line and Brake actually identified there is a greater risk with young drivers using sat nav in the car on their own. The driving test would still require intervention from the examiner if the sat nav makes an error, how does that prepare drivers for post test capabilities. The evidence has always supported preparing pupils for post test, this is not the case when looking at the new proposals.  It is of course an easy teach for driver trainers.

Driving forward into a parking bay, reversing out of a parking bay, surely that is part of learning to drive anyway. Parking on the right. Pupils already do this on a one way street.

The new driving test is not reflective of the NDRS and totally represents a waste of tax payers money. More publications, more research, more trials, more money.

The new driving test has returned a higher pass rate. Hardly a surprise, trails involve new skills from the trainer, so refreshed, pupils who take part in trials are usually the better able learner who would have also most likely passed the old style test.

ADI's who know what is needed for safer roads and better educated young drivers, need real representation within the DFT.

.Support the ADI within the industry, don't fight them.

From a personal note, sabotage of a professional presentation is rude, disrespectful and damaging for the industry as whole. Thank you to all of the attendees at yesterdays meeting who contacted us with words of support and encouragement. It is heartening to find that there were many who did not support the poor and unprofessional behaviour of someone who is supposed to be a leading supporter and owner of a national association for ADI's.

Changes to the Driving Test

There's a whisper, it is only a whisper that once the trials are completed it is unlikely implementation will take place. As there will be a consultation it is unlikely to find enough support unless it is not well advertised. If 100 people take part and they can all be DFT staff and 60 say yes it will be approved. However it is likely the press will run with this story more prolifically because it sells newspapers, with voting on line making it easy to take part it may cause more of a furore than previous voting efforts.  Of course this in expected to be a 2017 vote thereby clashing with the more popular referendum of whether the UK remains in the EU.

The DFT announced cuts of £545m, the fact that nearly the same amount is being taken from business, innovation and skills is bad news for the small business owner, directly in conflict with the Tort party declaring they are the supporter of small businesses. As these cuts will be spread across all DFT departments rather than one target area, the DVSA will come in line for yet more trimming, this may affect the decision to train more examiners for the new test, or just be the inroad to privatisation of the driving test.

Although there is a tweak to the manoeuvres in the new test it hardly reflects real driving. if you cannot drive through one bay and park in another, or reverse into a bay directly behind you. Although the statement is that killing someone while reversing at slow speed is unlikely and therefore the manoeuvres lose importance, surely it's about demonstrating skill in both directions. To take turn in the road from the test seems a little strange. The original manoeuvre was introduced to the test because of the missed observations and associated risk when performing this, in today's traffic this is still something that needs to be learned. There have been several fatal accidents in recent years, one involved a grandmother with her two grandchildren in the car, she turned the car around without sufficient observations and a van drove straight into the side of her car, she suffered serious injuries and the children were killed. Mistakes do happen but this is a common way to turn the car around in built up areas.

If the UK leaves the EU the pressure to tackle road death is relieved and along with that the compulsory conformity.  If we stay then there will be an intention to enforce mandatory road safety changes, but the Government will want to weigh up the cost, as they are looking to make cuts across all public services of £4.5 bn.