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How To Improve Your Driving Skills After Passing Your Driving Test

Passing your driving test is an exhilarating feeling. After all of the stress and worry of preparing for he test you can now relax and enjoy your own personal freedom on the open road. However you must remember that in terms of driving experience you are still a relative novice, and you should remember that a good driver is always learning and improving even further their skills at the wheel.

Whilst driving lessons and the test itself are very comprehensive and cover most of the major driving situations, you will still lack proper experience of driving on motorways, at night and in adverse weather conditions. New drivers particularly finding driving on motorways a challenge, because of the higher speeds involved and the need to look further ahead and anticipate earlier.

To build on these gaps in your driving abilities you can take an official Pass Plus course within your first year of passing your driving test. The course consists of six training sessions that are specifically tailored to develop your driving abilities further, and to introduce a range of special advance driving techniques. Participants in the Pass Plus scheme can also qualify for reduced car insurance premiums with certain car insurance companies.

Whilst taking part in the Pass Plus scheme will set you up for adopting good driving habits, the first few years of your driving career will still be very testing and challenging. You will encounter new and unfamiliar driving situations, which may leave you feeling nervous or hesitant.

One options is to fit a P plate to your vehicle. Just like L Pates they must be fitted to ensure that they do not obscure number pates, car lights or visibility. P plates will indicate to other road users that you are newly qualified driver, and will hopefully ensure that they will give you more time and allowances as you develop your driving skills further.

Sadly, even with P plates fitted, you will still find some drivers may be rude or aggressive towards you, because they feel you are not driving as fast or as confidently as they feel you should. Never react to this sort of bad driving behaviour, instead try to remain calm and focussed, and only drive at a speed or in a manner in which you feel comfortable.

After several months of driving it will be important to guard against complacency and overconfidence, as you are still at a high risk of having a driving accident, a fact that is borne out by the higher insurance premiums.

Remember that a good driver always takes great pride in their driving standard, and will continue to improve their ability behind the wheel throughout their driving career.

About the Author

Jo Alexander is an online, freelance journalist and keen windsurfer. Jo lives by the sea in Essex.

How easy would it be for a person to learn how to drive a standard Geo Metro?

Ive never driven a standard vehicle in all my life.

You will catch on quick. Just find someplace with lots of room and no traffic or obstacles. A big abandoned parking lot or a field. Get someone else to drive the car there. Watch their feet as they are driving. then you take over. You'll probably stall it several times but I bet that after an hour or so you will have confidence to drive home. When you get so you can start off on an upward hill with out stalling, or rolling back, I'd say that you have it made.