Driving test notes
Alertness
Things to be aware off
Other road users
Pedestrians
Signs and road markings
Weather conditions
The area you're driving through
Before you move off you should
Use your mirrors to check how your actions will affect traffic behind you
Look around for a final check inlcuding checking blind sspots around your car
Signal if neccessary
Getting a clear view
If you can't see behind you aksk someone to guide you, if your view is blocked by a parked card mov eforward carefully iun til you have a clear view
Overtaking
Observation is particularly important when you're taking another vechile
Look out for
Vechiles coming towars you
Whether you're near a junction vechiles could come out of the hunctions you're overtaking
Whether the road gets narrower- there may not be enogugh space to oveetake
Bends or dups in the road which will make it difficult ofr you to see through traffic coming toward you
Road signs that mean you must not overtake
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Being seen by oteehrs
Switch on your lights wheen it starts to get dark, even if the street lights aren't on
Where you can't be seen, such as at a hump bridge, you may need to use your horn
Following large vechile stay well back
Road signs
Circles give orders
Triangles give warnings
Rectangles Give Info
Turning right onto a dual carriage way check central reservation large enough to stop in
Road conditions
The weather is very wet or windy
The lught is poor
Traffic volume is heavy
The route you're driving is new to you
Be aware of more vulnerable road users
Pedestrians especially young older or disabled peopl who may nedd more time toc ross
Cyclists- always pass slwoly and leave plentry of room, especially if the cyclist is young and ha s ltitle experience
Motorcyslits, who may be difficult to see
Horses which may be startled by the noise of your vechile- pass them slowly and leave room
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Staying Focused
Always plan your journey, know which route you need to take and have regular rest stops
don't drive con tinously for more than two hours, keep fresh air circulating, if you start to geel drowsy leave at the next exist, ind a safe place to stop and tak a brak
Losing concentration for one second your vechile tracels 27 metres at 60 MPH
Meeting the Standard
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Atttitude
Good manners on the road; be considerate to other roqad users
Be patient calm and tolerant
Keep on a steady course if people want to flash their headlights
Only nsound the horn if there;s danger
Dip lights when following another vechile/ meeting a vechile coming towards you
Animals on the road
Horses can be firtherdned easily- keep your speed down and give them plenty of room
Dry conditionjs leave a two second gap
Wet conditions leavee a 4 second gap
Always give priority to emergency vechiles
Unamrked crossroad no one has priority
Crossing
Pelican Crossing
Zebra crossing
Puffin corssing
Toucan crossing
Toucan crossing same as puffin crossing but allows cyclists,
Watch out for pedestrians or approaching a zebra crossing
If you're approaching a pelician crossing and the amber light is flashing: give way to predetrians don't move off until crossing is clear
Puffin Crossing electronically controled ensuroing that red light shows until pedestrian has safely crossed the road. These Crossing don't have a flashign amber light; they have a steady amber light like normal traffic lights
Be ready to slow down and stop
Be patient if they cross slowly
Don't encoiurage them to cross by waving or flashing headlights may be another vechile coming
Safety and Vechile
Looking after your car
Windscreen should be free of cracks and chips
battery may need topping up with distilled water
Tyre Condition- ueven wear can be caused by faults in braking system suspension or tracking if the front wheels unabalanced
Brake fluid: If this is low air may enter the system and breaks won't work properly
Oil and coolant levels: especially important before a long journey be careful
tread must be at least 1.6 mmacross central three quaters of the tire
Dealing with faults
Basic understanding of how your car works help you recognise when there's a problem with it
Check your checule handbook to make sure that you know what all the warning light means
Don't ignore a warning: it could affect your safety
Anti Lock Braking system (ABS) warning light should go out when the car's travelling at 5-10 mph.
Break fade is when brakes become less efffective obecause of overheating
Visit the garage as soon as possible if
the steering vibrates- the wheels may need balancing, the vechiles pull to one side
Safety equipment
Seat belts and restraints
Children ahe dd 3 to 12 years or up to 1.35 metres must use a suitable chuild restraint.
Adults 14 and over and children over 1.35 metres MUSt wwear a seat belt
Children under 3 yeards of age must use suitable child seat
When you get into the car
Adjus the eseat so that you reach aoll the controls comfortable
Adjust the head restraint to prevent neck injury
Wear suitabl shoes, so tht you can keep control
Adjust the mirrrors so that you see as clearly possible all around convex mirrrors give widder view
Lights
If you're dirving in poor visblity used dipped, if thick godg use fog lights
Hazard warning lights fihtited so can warn road users of when you've nroken down
When leaving yoiurn car on a two wway road park car in direction of traffic
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Security
Use a steering Lock
Remove the car keys and lock your car, even if yoiu only leaving it for a short time
Lock any contents, especially valiuables, ouyt of sight, or take them wtih you if you can
Don't leave the vechile registration documents in the car
At night, park in well lit area
Parking safely
In front of a property ntrance
Must not leave your vechiule unattended with the enginer running
At or near a bus stop
Near the brow of a hill, where limited view of the limited view ahed makes it difficult to see wheteher it's safe to pass the obstruction
At a dropped kerb, s this sos a place for wheelschair onad ,mobility scooters
Being aware of the enviroment
Ecosafe driving
Reduce your speed. Vechiles travelling at 80moph use 30% more fuel than those travelling at 50
Plan well ahead so that you can drive smoothly- avoding rapid accleration
USe elective gear changing
Havve your vechile serviced and tuned properly
Noise Pollution
MUST not use your car horn between 11.30 and 700 unless another vechile poses a danger
Make sure fuel iller cap securely fastened if it's loose could waste fuel and money
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Meeting the standards
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Lights And reflectors
Tyres
Pre-Start Checks
Legal
Clean
Good working order
Doors
Parking Brake
Seat
Steering
Seatblet
Mirrors
Pressure
Tread Depth
Must be kept clean alongside relfectors
Must be able to checked they're correctly fitted, inflated have tread deoth and are legal
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Safety Margins
Keep control of your car by using the correct prociedires, for eisntance when you're travelling on a long downhill strch of road control your spoeed by sleecting a lowe r gear, execissive braking on hill cans cause breaks overheat
Thinking distance+ Braking idstance= Stopping distance
Stopping distances- with good tyres and brakes, on a dry road, in good conditions
20mph
12 Metres (Three car lengths)
30mph
23 Metres (Six Car lengths)
40mph
36 Metres (Nine car lengths)
50mph
53 Metres (13 car lengths)
60mph
73 Metres (18 Car Lengths)
70mph
96 Metres (24 Car lengths)
Need to leave gap
Dry Coniditions
2 Second Gap
Wet Weather leave four second gap
Icy weather leave 20 second gap
Weather condtions
Heavy Rain can cause aquaplanning, when tyres skate on water
Ease off the acclerator and don't break until sttering feels normal
Driving through deep water, test breaksn may need to press lightly on brake pedal to dry em out
Hot and/or bright
Hot weather can be dangerous the road surface become soft, brihgbt sunlight can dazzle
Freezing
Freezing conditions can make roads very slippery whimake car harder to control
When driving Keep Speed down, brake gently and in plenty of time be prepared to stop and clean your windscreen by hand if the wipers can't keep the windscreen clear
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Foggy
Fog Reduces your visiblity
Allow more time for your journey
Slow doewnb because you can't see as far ahead as usual
Increase the gap between your vechile aqnd the one oin front yog you
Use dipped headlights even in the daylight
Windy
High-sided Vechiles
Vechiles towing trailers or caracans
Motorcyclists
Cyclists
If yoiu passs these motorists take care
Skidding
Skidding is when the tires lose grip on the road caused surface tyre conditions can increase the risk of skidding how drivers controls accleration
Reduce the risk of skidding in slippery conditions at low speed in the highest gearyou can use effectively
Slow down gradually before you reach a hazard such s a bend avoid sudden steering movements
Break too hard and skid Take your goot off brake then press it again gently, steer in direction of skid
ABS also designed to oprevent skidding, if you ahev to brake press footbreak quickly and firmly don't realease the break pedal until it stopped
May not work as well if there's surface water such as when there's been heeqavy rainfall, a loose road cesurface such as gravel
Selectiver breakinh inytervetion to restore vechile stablity
Electronic Stablity control
ESC, sometimes allows the vechile to turn where the dirve expects remain undern control
Conntinual readiness, becoming vechile skidding is immently
detecting the risk of a skid at an ealry stage before breaking
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Contraflow
Reduce your speed in good time
Choose a suitable lane in good time, look for signs adivising you to use a particular laneg if you want to take an exit that will be coming up soon , or if you ahevba wide vechile
Keep a wide distance behind bevhile in fornt
Hazard Awareness
Hazard potentials
Statics- Parked cars
Moving, Pedestrians cycluist or drivers
Roads and weather
You if you aren't alert and fiot to drive
bends
Junctions
Roundabouts
Parked vechiles and obstructions in the road
Roadworks
Road surfaces
Traffic lights
Need to watch oiut for children running out from between vechilkes, vechile doors opening and vechiles moving away
Visiblity reduced at hunctions in built up atreas, take extra care and pull forward slowly
Pedestriabs
Be patient and wait for them to finish crossig
Cyclists
At junctions or traffic lights
Motorcyclists
Look out for motorcyclists emerging from a junction,
Turning into a road
Changing langes or moving to overtake
Horses
Unpredictable and easily spooked reduce your pseed and give them room when ovetaking
Drivers of large vechiles
If bus at bus stop
People mauy get off and then cross the trroad
The bus may be about to move off n