:idea: Regular driving assessments
Discussion
One of the hosts at the speed awarness course I did recently said that they (as in Rospa, Brake, IAM etc) believe that only 7% of those currently holding a driving lisence would pass the current test.
I've no idea where that stat came from, or how you could even derive it, but never the less, it was food for thought.
I've no idea where that stat came from, or how you could even derive it, but never the less, it was food for thought.
drivin_me_nuts said:
One of the hosts at the speed awarness course I did recently said that they (as in Rospa, Brake, IAM etc) believe that only 7% of those currently holding a driving lisence would pass the current test.
I've no idea where that stat came from, or how you could even derive it, but never the less, it was food for thought.
As many as that!I've no idea where that stat came from, or how you could even derive it, but never the less, it was food for thought.
And compulsory re-testing may actually REDUCE the cost of driving if it reduced the amount of accidents on the roads etc.
nobodyknows said:
As many as that!
And compulsory re-testing may actually REDUCE the cost of driving if it reduced the amount of accidents on the roads etc.
Agreed!And compulsory re-testing may actually REDUCE the cost of driving if it reduced the amount of accidents on the roads etc.
And agreed.
But how long would it take to reap the return on the massive investment required?
There are something like 38 million licenced road users in the UK. Even with a mandatory 5 yearly re-test, no UK government would be that forward-looking (or thinking) to pay for the necessary infrastructure, knowing that the pay back would be such a long time in the making.
In the meantime, they are using other methods to reduce the number of road users and as a corollary, the accident rate.
markmullen said:
I think a compulsory retest every 5 years is a good idea in principle, sadly the execution would be a nightmare, there isn't capacity in the network of examiners for the huge numbers of tests.
I did not mention doing a test because I do not believe that is necessaryno matter what is done it will not prevent someone driving like a numpty if they choose to do so
what it will do is get drivers to look at their own driving every so often and demonstrate that they are capable of driving safely
One hour or so every 5 years would do the trick and using their own car would keep the cost right down to perhaps £20 so that = £4 per year
Edited by R0G on Saturday 16th July 11:17
markmullen said:
I think a compulsory retest every 5 years is a good idea in principle, sadly the execution would be a nightmare, there isn't capacity in the network of examiners for the huge numbers of tests.
exactly however some kind of driver development activity as 'CPD' would be great, it wouldn't mean any more work for those who allready drive for work and have some kind of assessment / training / emergency services/ have MiDAS or similar for minibus driving through charities / community groups or are I Am Meldrew or RoADA members ...
along the lines of pass plus / MiDAS /SaFED
Should be a Police power if spotted misbehaving that you have to pay for a check ride, some people manage to behave, drive well and not cause any problems despite no retest, they gain experience and skill, I always find IAM qualified drivers to be better than average but sometimes tend to think it confers more skill than it probably does.
IAM drivers are only adavancd drivers if they are driving to that standard but as with many drivers they can slip into less safe habits - that is a fault of being human
Someone who perhaps passed the IAM test 10 years ago might be very lacking in their driving now - the only way for them to find out is to have a free assessment drive with an observer
Someone who perhaps passed the IAM test 10 years ago might be very lacking in their driving now - the only way for them to find out is to have a free assessment drive with an observer
How would it help? Have all the crap drivers suddenly become crap after passing their test? No, they were crap when they passed. If they were crap and passed their initial test they can be crap and pass any number of others. The only effect it would have is to inconvenience decent drivers. A far better idea would be to 1) Not allow someone to be on the road in the first place if they can't drive and 2) actually take note of people's driving history and use that to ban them from the road. For some reason, the latter is not done in terms of anything consequential. Look at the scum woman in the other thread who drove like a lunatic on the wrong side of the road, for several miles, then knocked down an old guy after driving the wrong side of a bollard and carried on as if nothing had happened. She'll be back behind the wheel in two years. What does someone have to do to be banned for life, strap chainsaws to their car and drive down the aisles in Tesco?
The suggestion is that the government are going to introduce compulsory re-tests for everyone who gets disqualified. That actually closes a little loophole for new drivers too who can currently try and get disqualified and thereby avoid 6 points reverting them to learner status.
However, that really doesn't catch the muppets - you know, the ones who do 50 in the middle lane of a rainy motorway with no lights.
However, that really doesn't catch the muppets - you know, the ones who do 50 in the middle lane of a rainy motorway with no lights.
No.
Aside from the costs, have you seen the amount of muppets that pass the normal driving tests? Why would a re-test of the same muppet to the same standard be any more useful?
Even the IAM stuff is useless pedantry in a lot of instances, this "drive by the numbers" stuff is great, but there's plenty of IAM drivers who are still bloody awful and all the more pious with it.
On the plus side, I have just driven 3000 miles across Europe. I can assure you we are probably the best.
Aside from the costs, have you seen the amount of muppets that pass the normal driving tests? Why would a re-test of the same muppet to the same standard be any more useful?
Even the IAM stuff is useless pedantry in a lot of instances, this "drive by the numbers" stuff is great, but there's plenty of IAM drivers who are still bloody awful and all the more pious with it.
On the plus side, I have just driven 3000 miles across Europe. I can assure you we are probably the best.
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