Safe Speed Forums

Mark White, Home Affairs correspondent

Britain is set for the biggest shake-up of the driving test in nearly 70 years in an attempt to cut the number of deaths on the roads.

The driving test may be overhauled so it better addresses safety issues


The Road Safety Minister has told Sky News that the Government wants to change the culture of the test so road safety plays a more prominent role.

The move comes as part of an effort to cut the huge number of young and newly qualified drivers killed or seriously injured on Britain's roads every year.



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In an exclusive interview, Jim Fitzpatrick MP said: "We are talking about a driving qualification taking place in schools and colleges to prepare people for driving and the whole issue of road safety.
"We're talking about completely revamping the testing procedure which has pretty much remained the same since the 1940s.

"What we've been doing is teaching people how to mechanically manoeuvre a vehicle, not teaching them to drive safely so we're actually changing the whole culture of the driving test and how we prepare people for that driving test".



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Figures released in June showed road deaths in 2007 had dropped below 3,000 for the first time since records began.

But in comparison with other forms of transport, the numbers remain staggering.

Five people were killed in accidents on the railways in 2007; 19 people were killed in private light aircraft crashes but the number of deaths on the road were 2,943.

While acknowledging that progress had been made, Mr Fitzpatrick insisted there was still more to be done.

"We are still killing eight people a day in this country," he said.

"If you saw that happen in aviation or on the railway it would be major news headlines for days, even weeks.


The whole life we'd envisaged with Margaret is totally gone. Nothing can replace it. What can you replace those dreams with? There will be wedding, no grandchildren, no Sunday visits for Sunday dinner.

Elizabeth Davidson, whose daughter Margaret was killed by a speeding driver.

"Because we're talking about individual instances across the country these figures don't feature very often in the media.

"But for the families and friends of those who are killed or seriously injured - and we're talking about 30,000 of those as well - these are major incidents and major tragedies so we've got to work very hard to get them down."

The Department for Transport has been carrying out a major consultation process this summer into the suitability of the current driving qualification system.

The department is expected to publish its findings and proposals in the autumn.

Vince Yearly, from the Institute of Advanced Motoring, said the current proposals did not go far enough.



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"We want the Government to encourage them to carry on their driver education beyond the L-test, to start earlier and go beyond the L-test as well.

"The question is what happens after you've passed you're driving test?" he said.

"That's where we think more could be done, in that crucial six months, those first solo hours, when you really learn to drive.

"You don't have an instructor, and you may not have a parent with you.

"That's where you find out all the distractions that younger drivers have to face".



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Official research suggests that around a third of deaths on the road involve a car driven by someone under 25, yet that age group only accounts for one in eight licence-holders.

Amongst those, male drivers aged 17-20 are ten times more likely to be killed or seriously injured than more experienced drivers.

Now public opinion also seems to be recognising the growing issue of young inexperienced drivers - in a survey of over 3,000 drivers undertaken by Sky News, some 60% said they believed the current driving age of 17 was too young.

A controversial one this, however I think it holds should be given some serious consideration.

Computer Games... I played them through my youth (and to this day). Some of the driving ones are obviously ridiculous (need for speed etc) some of them fantastic. And I'm not saying this as a sole means for education, but Gran Turismo certainly gave me serious lessons on braking distances, cornering, how different cars handle, changing gears etc [you actually have to get licenses to race in this game, with each license requiring you to learn the braking distances/acceleration/handling abilities of different cars]... Colin McRae rally games teach of handling in wet etc. They don't teach us how to drive, but they do educate on all these important aspects of driving.

I feel they definately had a positive effect on my ability to learn to drive, and my awareness of how cars handle differently in the wet, how some cars take longer to slow down, how the difference in weight between cars makes them corner differently etc. You obviously aren't feeling the cars as not real, however it brings it to their attention.

Has anyone ever played the above mentioned games? How do you feel they influence young people?