Friday 14th September 2001

Advanced Training for School Run Mums

IAM set their sights on the morning rush

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[PipSqueak111]

I applaud any effort to improve driving standards in this country, but don''t believe that this scheme will truly work. The parents and teachers that take up this scheme will be conscientious people, that no doubt currently drive with a great deal of common sense. The menace drivers on the school run do not give a fig about how they drive, so long as they get their screaming brats to school and off their hands as quickly as possible. These are the people we need to target, but are the people who will dismiss the idea out of hand. Sadly, this apathy towards driving standards is widespread, and I believe to be more of a hazard than minor breaches of speed limits. The government and police want to move the focus away from speed and towards dangerous driving. Police officers I have spoken to agree, and in their day to day work try to apply common sense when tackling offending motorists. Legislation and policy needs to be steered towards common sense policing though, not as it is at the moment, towards quotas and performance targets. Then we will see safer roads.

[philshort]

The first lesson in this course ought to be showing these mums how to put one foot in front of the other. Or how to locate a bus stop.

[IPAddis]

I've always thought (contraversially) that a compulsary driving test every 5/10 years would be a good idea. I would be quite happy (if somewhat dissapointed) to take extra lessons if an examiner felt that I did not pass the minimum standard for normal driving on the road. Perhaps a fail on the first & second attempts would require compulsary extra lessons and a retest instead of a ban. It might also be a good idea to make the tests more frequent for drivers over 70. I'll get my baseball cap. Ian A Griff 500

[apache]

whats the point if the test is pants anyway, does the test include any motorway skills or emergency advice, lane filtering, observation skills. How many times have you heard an instructor tell the pupil "I'm going to teach you how to pass a test not how to drive" It is the whole attitude to driving that needs addressing, if the job is done right in the first place a retest should not be needed