Learner drivers accompanied by approved instructors were allowed
to drive on motorways for the first time 6 months ago in a law
change pioneered by Highways England.
As part of the changes, the government company - responsible for
repairing, maintaining, improving and operating the country’s
motorways - has also been trialling a project to develop closer
links with the instructor community through a programme of visits
to its network of regional control centres (RCCs).
Highways England’s control room team manager Neil Lloyd (far
right) talks ‘signs and signals’ with approved driving instructor
visitors
Maggie Carter, Highways England’s operations manager for
strategic safety, said:
Our regional control centres are the nerve centres of the
motorway network. These visits are designed to help prepare
instructors as they start to take learners out onto motorways
and sharpen their focus on the way our motorways are changing -
including the arrival of smart motorways - and an appreciation
of the work our uniformed traffic officers do to keep drivers
on the move.
The response from instructors during the visits has been
universally positive. They’ve been telling us the change in the
law is increasing the confidence and willingness of
newly-qualified drivers to take to the motorway network - and
tackling the fear and nervousness displayed by some
older-generation drivers, some of whom admit they’ve never even
ventured onto a motorway.
AA and BSM driving instructor trainer Dave Harvey – local support
lead for Wirral and Chester – led a group of approved and trainee
instructors on one such visit to the North West RCC last month.
The instructors were shown one of Highways England’s
hi-visibility four wheel drive vehicles and got to see the kit
traffic officers carry. They were also able to quiz control room
traffic officers on how they keep the regional motorway network
running, including monitoring traffic conditions and setting
electronic signs.
Mr Harvey said:
These visits give an invaluable insight to the work Highways
England does to keep us all moving – and safely. Even for a
veteran like me there were new nuggets of information and
advice that I have begun sharing - with learners and full
licence holders alike.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) emphasises that
motorway lessons give learner drivers the confidence, skills and
experience they need to use motorways safely. During lessons,
learner drivers get training on:
- how to join and leave the motorway, overtake and use lanes
correctly
- using smart motorways correctly
- driving at high speed in motorway conditions
- motorway-specific traffic signs
- what to do if a vehicle breaks down on a motorway
The control centre visits are also being used to highlight the
kinds of resources available to instructors, parents and learner
drivers. These include on-line tailor-made information and
interactive learning for driving on high speed
roads. The driving hub
website is produced by Highways England and government
and industry partners like the Driver and Vehicle Licensing
Agency (DVLA) and Driving Instructors Association (DIA).
Mr Harvey added:
The learner driver initiative itself, backed by the Driving Hub
learning resource, is proving popular with learners giving them
the knowledge and confidence to take to the motorway network
once they’re qualified.
