Learning to Drive

Learning to drive, driving, and using public transport

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monkey
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Location: new zealand

Post by monkey »

im reciving tutorying to help me learn the road coad. does anyboyd else find the road code very diffuiclt to understnad?
Daniel
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Post by Daniel »

I suppose it's difficult for people here to say, Monkey, as the road code could be quite different in NZ to how it is in Britain. We both drive on the left I believe, so that's something :)

Seriously though, I remember treating the code as a test I had to learn the answers to; breaking distances etc. and learning in particular any of the road signs that I either didn't know or weren't clear as to what they mean.

There seems to be a computer based part of the British theory test which a lot of people fail on, where you have to indicate where there's a potential danger, or something like that.
towildhoney
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Post by towildhoney »

I had no problem learning the high way code I think you can get extra time in your theory test I just couldn't drive I had at least 30 lesons and could never reverse around a corner I never took a test as there was no chance I'd pass.
pussinboots
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Post by pussinboots »

You've no idea how wonderful it is to discover this forum. I didn't even know that what I had was dyspraxia until very recently. I've had numerous attempts at driving over the years. I've had 9 instructors in total and failed in both an automatic and manual car. The examiner slammed the brake on at a roundabout in the automatic car as I thought the lorry was miles away from me. (Obviously not!!!)

My husband, who is taking me out to practise sometimes with driving, thinks I'm being deliberately dim when I tell him I really don't know which way to turn the wheel when I'm reversing. Friends and even friend's daughter's sail through their tests whilst I'm giving up yet again. :-({|= ;)

I'm determined to stick with it this time though and try and not get envious of others who don't have difficulties with it as I really need the freedom and independence being able to drive brings.

I walk almost everywhere. (You should see my feet!- They aren't pretty).

I'm rather nervous of public transport now since 7/7.

Reading all your difficulties makes me feel that I'm amongst friends and it's so good to post to people who knows how difficult certain things can be.
donnaf
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Post by donnaf »

I know I will never be able to drive. I tried before I knew I was dyspraxic n had to give up cause I was unbelievably rubbish at it. When I tried to convince myself it was my driving instructors fault, I changed instructors n got told all the same stuff by the new guy. Thats when I gave up. I had 15 lessons n literally didnt learn a thing, I couldn't even position the car on the road properly.
Now I know I'm dyspraxic and I know how it affects me, I realise why I was so bad at it. It does get to me sometimes, I know a lot of dyspraxics can drive even if it's in an automatic rather than a manual, but my perception n coordination is terrible even for a dyspraxic.
I get knocked down, but I get up again, you're never ever gonna keep me down :D

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robyn

Post by robyn »

I will try to learn at some point, but I really doubt I'll manage. I just dont see how I could pay attention well enough to drive home after work, its a scarey thought. But Iv only ever had lessons form my dad, before I knew I had dyspraxia, so I'll see what a driving instructor says. I guess not being able to drive is something I may have to put up with, Im sure many of us are in that same postion. Its infuriating!!
Meg
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Post by Meg »

I'm learning to drive and have had bout 40 lessons so far and am taking my theory soon. I havea really good instructor who taught my friend to drive and hes so lovely and never shouts at me.

When I was 17 I learnt in an sutomatic and my instructor was so horrible to me and kept puttine me down even though i knew i was right!

I am now larning in a manual and finding it quite easy.
Daniel
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Post by Daniel »

Great, Meg, let us know how you get on. I think this might be the year I have another crack at driving myself.

Dan.
Greg
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Post by Greg »

Heyup pussinboots,

I shouldn't let 7/7 put you off public transport. It's easy to think about changing the way you go about life when something gets overeported, but the news these days is more about entertainment than information. Always best to make decisions as complete a dataset as possible right.

So... http://www.vtpi.org/transitrisk.pdf

I think they should've also made the comparison to walking (since I'm sure traffic accidents and muggings etc. provide that with a level of risk) just so that all my options are represented - but "UK Transit passengers have about one-twentieth the traffic fatality rate as automobile occupants." is a convincing enough argument for me to keep using the trains.

Even if they do strike on christmas eve :P

Anyway, sorry to hijack the thread to spout off at the mouth with my pro-public transport agenda ;)[/i]
pussinboots
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Post by pussinboots »

Greg wrote:Heyup pussinboots,

I shouldn't let 7/7 put you off public transport. It's easy to think about changing the way you go about life when something gets overeported, but the news these days is more about entertainment than information. Always best to make decisions as complete a dataset as possible right.

So... http://www.vtpi.org/transitrisk.pdf

I think they should've also made the comparison to walking (since I'm sure traffic accidents and muggings etc. provide that with a level of risk) just so that all my options are represented - but "UK Transit passengers have about one-twentieth the traffic fatality rate as automobile occupants." is a convincing enough argument for me to keep using the trains.

Even if they do strike on christmas eve :P

Anyway, sorry to hijack the thread to spout off at the mouth with my pro-public transport agenda ;)[/i]
Many thanks for that Greg I've just seen it and went on to the link to see the statistics regarding terrorism and public transport, I found it really interesting. I've moved house now so have to get back on the bus again anyway as I'm further away from stuff. I'm still plugging away at learning to drive and have found another instructor. (This will be the 10th!!!!!) One of these days I may pass my test. Though I've heard on the news that the driving test is going to be made even harder. They just keep moving the goal posts. I'm glad there are people on here who understand though. It'd be great to find someone near me with dispraxia so we could compare notes.

Hope you managed with public transport over Xmas and thanks again for your reply.

Regards,

Pussinboots
Shadwell
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Post by Shadwell »

the main things you need to do when learning to drive, is a quiet area to start off with, as working around other drivers will make you, and them very angry, and put you off driving.

the other thing you need is a very understanding driving instructor, and that can make you laugh! laughter when behind the wheel makes you more relaxed!!

and makes the driving lessons easier.

don't expect it to be easy, ever, as driving around other cars never is.

the easiest way I found was to learn how far it takes to stop the car, then leave that gap between you and the car infront. (if you catch a car going slowly!!)

judging speed is very hard, all you got to learn is can you get out safely, and up to the speed limit before he catches you.

if he does, then he is breaking the law! and is not your fault, learn landmarks (if it is usual roads, that you will be driving on) if the car is between you and that landmark, then it isn't safe to go.

the good point in learning landmarks ie. road sign or number of street lights, is that when you aren't on familiar roads, then you can learn where that landmark should be!

accept. you will never know what the other driver is going to do (you are not them)! they always do the unexpected! so if you prepare for the unexpected, then they can't do anything you aren't expecting!

driving simulators are probably the cheapest way of learning so much. but if you go to somewhere like bsm they will charge the earth!

goto an arcade! it usually has driving games, and it will allow you to work with changing gears, and steering and stuff. and as long as you don't spend all day on it!! then it will be cheaper!

I found learning to drive a lot easier after that! and passed first time back in 1994!

get whatever help you can with family, my father used to scream down my ear about speed and stuff all the time, even though I was driving at the speed of the road, and conditions, and as far as I could see.

I ended up just ignoring him in the end!! and only heard what was useful tips etc. he felt the road said 60mph, then you got to drive directly on 60mph, unless the corner is too sharp to do 60mph! 59mph wasn't good enough!

so don't allow the screaming get you down. families want to do the best, but can undo your confidence very easily if you let it.

good luck with learning
Daniel
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Post by Daniel »

As regards concerns about terrorism; I was living in Ealing when the Ealing bomb and White City bombs went off in 2001 (the latter being on my commuter route into central London) and I was also living in London when 7/7 took place.

I must admit that the Ealing incident did make me think about whether I wanted to be in London. I stuck with it though and eventually quit London for entirely different reasons.

On the second occasion the bomb didn't faze me at all. It helped that I was both living and working in the burbs so I only ventured into the centre when I felt like it. Nevertheless shortly after the bomb I was back in Central London. At the end of the day if your time's up there's not much you can do, but the chances of being caught up in terrorist action or even a more mundane accident on public transport are sufficiently minuscule that they're not worth bothering about in my mind.

As for safety, a couple of years ago I took a holiday in St Petersburg, Russia. I specifically flew with a Russian airline for the experience of travelling on an old Soviet jetliner. Although one of their planes of the same model crashed the following year I wouldn't worry about flying with them again, as I know that flights to the UK are governed by strict international standards.

The same can't be said for everywhere, however, as recent news from Indonesia goes to show. Weigh things up rationally and logically. You'll likely not have any problem with public transport in the UK but go to some corners of the world and the option of flying with some tinpot airline or on a poorly maintained overcrowded ferry through high seas might be worth giving a miss! :D
Meg
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Post by Meg »

The instructor I have now is really good and never shouts at me or puts me down and he makes me laugh every lesson!

Luv Meg
Xxxx
Esioul
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Post by Esioul »

That sounds good, Meg.

Daniel, everything is horrified about the sort of places I consider 'interesting'. Most of them are on the Foreign Office website as places to be avoided ;)
Shadwell
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Post by Shadwell »

I think that was the main thing with learning to drive Meg, you found a good instructor as well then, which is nice to see.

I think they do it to not only make driving lessons more fun, and to put you at ease, but the fact then, that you will spread their name around amongst friends!

I was also lucky, as it was the first driving instructor I went with, actually was good, and a laugh, makes driving a lot easier. esp. seen as you beat yourself up over your own mistakes!

my truck driving instructor is more army style! so it made it harder! not too hard though! as I had my father for most of my car lessons!!!

but the way he taught us was good, especially on the yard work, as we had cones, and he halved the amount of gap that we had to reverse the truck out of, so much so that we had the police driving instructor there watching!!

and he was super impressed with us, when the lad he was teaching couldn't even get his truck out of a gap twice the size without hitting cones over!!!

so in that sense it is better, but 6 hours of being with the driving instructor a day for 5 days was hard going!
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