A consultation paper on a new driving test is being drawn up by the Department for Transport and we’re expecting to see it within a fortnight.
So far, the government is tight-lipped about what might be in it.
But motoring groups have a few ideas about what could be there:
Apparently Ruth Kelly, transport secretary, is concerned about youngsters who have good driving skills (ie they are pretty handy with the brakes and gear stick) but lack the necessary maturity. Options proposed by Brake, the road safety group, include curfews for new drivers and/or limits on how many passengers they can take.
Not sure this is where the department is heading but there could be something similar.
One motoring group tells me that there’s a current “Pass Plus” system where new drivers take lessons on driving at night and on Motorways. One idea is to incorporate bits of this into the driving test to toughen it up.
Jim Pickard
Kiran Stacey
