Drivers call for further changes to new driving test

One in three drivers feels new changes to the driving test aren’t going far enough to improve road safety, a new report has revealed.

Research conducted by insurance comparison site Confused.com claims 40 percent in a sample of 2000 drivers felt poor driving was down to new motorists lacking necessary skills before taking to the road alone.

Changes to the driving test are being introduced by the government later this year aimed at reducing serious injuries and fatalities on the road.

The updated test will see the removal of a three-point turn and reversing around a corner in favour of manoevures the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency claims to be ‘more useful’. These include driving into and reversing out of a parking bay, as well as the driver pulling over to the right-hand side of the road and reversing two car lengths.

Trevor Wedge, former chief driving examiner for GB Driving Standards Agency said: “I would be keen to change the way the driving test is assessed. The focus at the moment is on identifying faults. We all make mistakes whilst driving and it’s not about what mistakes you make, it’s what you do about them.”

The research also shows 80 percent think learners should be taught driving etiquette such as lane discipline in order to minimise accidents caused by poor driving habits, with as many as 38 percent claiming to have experienced either a collision or near miss because of a driver switching lanes at the final moment.

by Ryan Hirons