Monday, 27 September 2010

Ban Rush Hour Driving Lessons

Quite simply, all learner drivers should be banned from the road between 7am - 9am and 5pm - 7pm. I don't want to be stuck behind a learner driver tailback trundling along at 20mph, or have to wait for ages behind one at a junction for them to find a gap a suitable number of football pitches long to pull out in to.

It should be illegal for driving instructors to give a lesson during the hours mentioned at the top of this article. From the commuters point of view, we've got somewhere to be, and we need to get there as quickly and as 'leagally' possible. Learner drivers further clog up, clogged up roads to the point of a horn honking, steering wheel hitting, screaming fit of anger. (Me, only in extreme cases of being held up). From the learner drivers point of view, its a bit of a waste of time to be sitting in traffic for the length of their lesson, and it must be a bit nerve racking learning to drive during the rush hour?



A sort of related image...
I was inspired to write this blog post because this morning I was waiting at a busy junction to turn right, one lane to turn right, and you've got to be quick, the lights only allow 3-4 cars through at most. I was stuck behind a learner for over 5 minutes, whilst they caused an almighty tailback by stalling 5 times at 3 green lights on this junction. One more and I had already decided I would have gotten out to tell the instructor to take over.

Just to clarify, I'm not having a go at learner drivers here, not even slow/bad/new learner drivers. Whilst they do annoy me when I get caught behind one, I accept that it's not their fault they can't drive, and that they are a necessary evil as we are all learner drivers once.

C'mon Boris, you wan't to help congestion in and around London? Forget your bike scheme, ban learner drivers during rush hours. You know it makes sense.

Comments (11)

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Cretinous Cretrin's avatar

Cretinous Cretrin · 758 weeks ago

So instead that you suggest that drivers don't experience dealing with rush hour congestion until they pass their test and are left in a car during rush hour on their own? Somehow I think this may have even more frustrating and traffic slowing results...
3 replies · active less than 1 minute ago
When you pass, you should be equipped to deal with traffic. If you're not, and you're not confident enough, start slowly, do a bit of driving when the roads are quiet on the weekends. Don't just go straight into rush hour driving. It's all about common sense.
haha, I agree with you Chris. Round by me we have an estate could the Firs Estate - a very affluent area and they did a survey the other day and counted 600 different learners in one day!
I can see how that would be annoying. Living in one of those areas where all the driving instructors take thier pupils because its spacious and quiet.
Cretinous Cretrin's avatar

Cretinous Cretrin · 758 weeks ago

How could you possibly be equipped to deal with traffic if you've never been given the opportunity to experience it? You'd like to issue driving licences under the assumption that they'll start off slow and not risk the rush hour traffic (something you couldn't possibly control and that you know as well as I do wouldn't happen with half of the cretins we have in this country)? Isn't that the whole point of driving lessons to begin with IE to put a nervous, new driver into situations that they'll experience regularly with somebody in the car with them that can take control if things go wrong?

Annoying as it is this is something that you need to accept as part of the learning process for a new driver.
1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago
Sadly, you don't have to drive in rush hour to experience traffic. People can have a lesson driving through a town center on a weekend if they want to experience traffic. I am specifically against having lessons during rush hour. It's irresponsible when everybody else is trying to get to or from work. The roads are congested enough already.
fesantplucka's avatar

fesantplucka · 757 weeks ago

In part I agree with you Chris, driving is all about confidence so I would say that learner drivers should only be out in rush hour traffic once they have the driving confidence to deal with it and to be honest what sort of sadistic instructor gets you to drive at that time of day?
I come across quite a few on my way home from work and i'm patiernt with them as I remember how nerve racking it was when I was learning to drive 20 years ago and I can fully sympathise how much worse it must be now given the increase in traffic on our roads and how self indulgent we've become as a society in recent years
1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago
I'm always patient, because as you say, it is nerve wracking. But in the example described in the blog post above, after being stuck at the same lights for 5 minutes, having missed the green light 3 times, well, I challenge anyone to sit there and remain calm!
fesantplucka's avatar

fesantplucka · 757 weeks ago

Oh absolutely I can understand your frustration, I wasn't criticising your actions as I know I have felt and do feel the same frustarations and at times i've been behind learner drivers that clearly haven't got the confidence to be out on the open road and i lay the blame at the door of the instructor who should have better judgement.
Same with Tractors!! They should be banned from the roads during rush hours!!
I am so much agree on the Ban Rush Hour Driving Lessons that they implemented.What matters for me is to learn how to drive even a couple of hours only.

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