Professional driving tuition
Page 81
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
THE North Circular Road in London is not the
ideal place to learn to drive. Particularly on a Sunday afternoon. Photographer Dick Ross and I were involvedin an incident on this road when a learner driver attempted to cross our path against the traffic lights. She stalled the engine, restarted, jumped the car kangaroo fashion, stalled again, restarted and drove off weaving a precarious course along this very busy thoroughfare.
No one was injured and there was no damage to vehicles but I was left wondering how long her luck would hold out. This was yet another case of unprofessional tuition. The pupil was accompanied by a male companion and two children. The car was a mini saloon. Quite obviously this was a family outing cum driving instruction run.
In stark contrast to these conditions and circumstances, COMMERCIAL MOTOR'S pupil who is being instructed by BSM is training under a professional driver and in a suitably fitted car with no passenger distraction. Since the first article on this subject (CM. October 21) I have spoken to many recently qualified drivers. In almost every case tuition had included an element of professional training and a vast number had been exclusively professionally trained.
The pupil, who is in the mid-30 age group, has now completed 24 hours' tuition and will take her MoT driving test on December 22. The school estimates that the number of hours' tuition required equals the years of a person's age up to the mid-30 group. After 24 hours the pupil has assimilated all the knowledge required to pass an MoT test, and has been subjected to various types of routes and traffic conditions. She has not been trained on the test route and should therefore be able to tackle any kind of route if she passes the test. You will note that I still express a doubt about the eventual outcome of the test. It is, I feel, wise to be cautious.
Steering deficiency
During the period between lessons 12 and 24, the value of professional training was demonstrated on more than one occasion. At the end of lesson 12, the pupil had still to conquer a steering deficiency and learn to reverse. The deficiency which affected the steering was overcome by the instructor's observations, The pupil was taking too narrow and short a view of the road ahead. Those vehicles and hazards in the immediate vicinity were registering and almost immediately she had to take the appropriate action. Gradually her range of vision was extended and at 24 hours the steering deficiency had been corrected. This was one problem solved by professional know-how.
The pupil needed little tuition in the reversing manoeuvre but again professional know-how overcame a problem. For the first two runs the pupil suffered from double vision. This was corrected by advising her on the right seat position so that normal circulation was maintained. Such problems could not be so easily solved by a less experienced tutor.
Nothing now remains for our pupil but to continue training and take the MoT test, the result of which will appear in the Light Van and Fleet Car section of COMMERCIAL MOTOR of February 17. On that date I will also be writing about the advantage of training for and passing the Institute of Advanced Motorists' test. IAIN SHERRIFF