Hazard Perception

Posted on August 28th, 2008 by admin, under Driving Test, Driving Tips.

Hazard Perception is the drivers ability to recognise a situation on the road which is either dangerous, or has the potential to develop into a dangerous situation in which some driver action will be required. Good hazard perception requires good visual scanning and anticipation, and a good understanding of how driving situations can develop.

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Hazard Perception Test Video

Why the need for Hazard Perception

• Over confidence
  Young drivers rate their own performance as above average. They are more likely to equate “good” driving with the ability to master the controls of the car at higher speeds. However, vehicle control is only part of being a good, safe driver.
• Under-estimation of risk
  Young drivers take longer to develop the risk assessment skills required to safely interact with other road users. They detect and assess hazards more slowly, and they also under-estimate the risk of a hazard resulting in a crash and over-estimate their ability to deal with hazards.
• Age
  Young and novice drivers have a higher crash rate because they are inexperienced, their cognitive and perceptual skills are not fully developed and they take more risks. They also pick up bad habits quickly.
• Lack of driving experience
  Teenage drivers have less training and experience, which leads to more traffic violations.
• Poor attitudes
  The fact that violations, rather than errors or lapses, are associated with crashes suggests that they are caused by a poor attitude to road safety, rather than a lack of skill on the part of the drivers. While it is necessary to train drivers to a basic level skill, it is also necessary to persuade or constrain drivers not to violate. Therefore road safety efforts should be focussed on attitude change as well as initial skill training.

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Basic route planning for Driving Instructors

Posted on August 11th, 2008 by admin, under Driving Instructor, Driving Tips.

This is an essential element of driving lesson preparation. It requires a thorough
knowledge of local geography and traffic conditions. When planning routes you must
take into consideration any specific driving skill or procedure, which is still to
be practised. Any unsympathetic route can have disatrous consequences when learner
drivers are unnecessarily exposed to conditions with which they are unable to cope.
In extreme cases, and with particularly nervous leaner drivers, it may even make
them give up the idea of learning to drive at all.

A fairly wide selection of planned routes containing various types of traffic
hazards and conditions will be required. Flexibility is an impotant consideration
when planning a route because it allows for changes to be made midway through a
driving lesson. This may become necessary to allow more time to be spent on an area
of driving which may be proving unexpectedly troublesome, and yet still allow the
driving lesson to be completed on time for your next appointment or driving test.
Try not to repeat the same route excessively, this can lead to reducesd interest
from the learner driver, and this can lead to boredom and slow progress. Repetition
can be useful when it is carried out deliberately for a specific purpose relevant to
the driving lesson. An example could be practising control skills on the approach to
uphill junctions.

Training routes and areas fall into three main categories:

1. Nursery routes
2. Intermediate
3. Advanced

Nursery routes - require various kinds of roads. try to avoid busy roads and
initially, in the very early stages, roads with parked vehicles. These routes should
not include pedestrian crossings, traffic lights or roundabouts.

Intermediate routes - These routes should, wherever possible, be planned to avoid
dual carriageways, multi-laned roads and one way streets. Junctions which do not
conform to basic rules should also be excluded. Right turns on to very busy main
roads, and any other particularly difficult situation, should not normally be
incorporated into these routes where they can be avoided.

Advanced routes - These routes will incorporate most of the intermediate routes.
They should be progressively extended to include many variations to the basic rules
as possible.

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Dealing with difficult learner drivers

Posted on August 11th, 2008 by admin, under Driving Instructor, Driving Tips.

Driving Instructors who don’t learn how to work well with difficult learner drivers
will lose their confidence as well as the learner driver (the customer).

The nature of driving instruction requires that driving instructors work with
customers who may drive you up the wall (not literally!). regardless of whether your
customer is offhand, rude, frustrated, confused or irate, most minor problems do not
have to escalate into bad feelings.

The six steps in helping a customer are:

1. Let the pupil have their say
2. Avoid getting trapped with their negative feelings
3. Express empathy with the pupil
4. Begin to solve problems actively
5. Agree on solutions
6. Continue to check they are satisfied with progress so far.

When a learner driver is upset, they want two things: First, they want to let you
know how they feel, and then they want you to help them. It’s that simple. Some
driving instructors view learners becoming tense and frustrated as an indication of
the pupils inability to understand basic facts. However trying to resolve a
situation without listening to your pupils thoughts and feelings never works. Only
after the pupil has let you know their thoughts can they begin to hear what you have
to say.

Try it and see!

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