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Driving Lessons in the Dark 

29 October, 2004

The British School of Motoring (BSM) is calling on the UK government to ensure that learner drivers have experience of night-time driving before they take their practical driving test.

The call comes in the same week that MP David Kidney tabled a House of Commons question on the issue to Transport Secretary Alistair Darling.

Although only about 15% of total vehicle miles are carried out between the hours of 7pm and 7am, about 30% of reported injury accidents take place in that same period.

And the likelihood of being involved in an accident after dark is far greater for relatively inexperienced young drivers than for any other age group.

While driver fatigue, drug or alcohol abuse and other lifestyle factors may play a part in adding to the number of night-time accidents, BSM's road safety experts believe that young drivers' lack of experience and of the necessary skills plays a significant role - and one that can be tackled in a highly practical way.

''Very few learner drivers consider the extra problems of driving at night before they take their driving test'', says BSM road safety consultant Keith Cameron.

''And the take-up for the Driving Standards Agency's Pass Plus scheme -- which includes post-test tuition in night-time driving, motorway driving and other vital skills - remains disappointingly low.

''But, while incorporating driving at night into the practical driving test itself is impractical, it would be relatively easy to impose a requirement on learners to undertake some after-dark training -- certified by a professional instructor -- before they are allowed to take the test.''

RoadSafe is supportive of this proposal but would add that training for driving in wet conditions is equally important - 30% of all accidents happen at night, in wet conditions yet it is only wet on average only 10% of the time at night.

RoadSafe believes that an important aid to driver training is for students to keep a managed logbook to ensure that they have experience in all driving conditions.

Source: RoadSafe