curfew on Young Drivers

There is nothing wrong with the government trying to respond to the known statistics about the dangers young drivers and their passengers face.

Exceptions to the rule (i.e. young drivers who are very good) are wonderful to hear, but unfortuantely the problem is still a clear one that needs tackling.

I ony hope that they will come up with a coherent enforcable poilcy rather than a knee-jerk bit of window-dressing.

It may be our GC who will be saved by a good policy in this area.

Wouldn't be seen dead in a flat cap, or socks and sandals

But I like the idea of P plates and no alcohol.

Having moved around a fair bit, different areas of the country seem to have different hazards. Yes to Bradford... In Lincs it was beware of elderly males in flat caps pulling straight out in front of you. There and North of the Humber it was, beware as you go round a sharp bend because there will be someone overtaking on it. Seriously. In most cities it's people who sit on the yellow hatched areas at traffic lights, in the South the things that struck me were the amount of people who shot through level crossings at the last moment and also drove through red lights - once driving into the side of my car as they did so, also DBH had it happen to him. As most of the culprits I have seen have been middleaged males I feel quite defensive of the youngsters, but around where I live now is american air base territory and they go mad on our roads. They are always in our papers for speeding. They go mad because the speed restrictions in their own country is lower, I think it goes to their heads on our relatively quiet country roads. It is quite disconcerting to be trundling along at 60 on a quiet straight country lane and to have a glimpse of something way back behind you and then a couple of seconds later to have it whizz past you at heaven knows what speed. It scared the hell out of my son when he learnt to drive last year.

I haven't reached the grumpy old man stage yet

Like the idea of 'P' plate and alcohol free driving for a year sunseeker. Great shame about the CBT bikergran it certainly made me a much better car driver with a greater awareness of other road users. Berdie I think you would be good to drive with; so calm and sensible.

LizG I seem to think there was a vote to put questions about motorcycles in the car theory test, but apparently it didn't do any good and the DVLA decided not to include the questions. so I am led to believe .

I think the idea that all new drivers should drive on a "P" plate for a year is a good one. The idea of a curfew or having someone over 30 as a passenger is, in my opinion, a non starter. If the new driver is over the age of 30 would they still have to have a passenger over 30? As has been said before some new drivers may have jobs which involves their having to drive either late at night or early morning.

I do like the idea they have in Australia that any driver on a "P" plate must be completely alcohol free when driving, if caught with any alcohol in their system the officer who stopped them immediately takes their licence from them and they have to find alternative transport to wherever they are going.

Policy making, is that what its called, I thought MP's went down the pub,and then went with the first madcap scheme they could think up.This certainly sounds one.

of anecdote is - predictive texting!

Beardie - we all know good young drivers and bad old drivers but the plural if anecdote us not data - as someone once said of Gove's policy making

As a truck driver for well over 43 years, I have seen all types of driving both here and abroad. To blame the youth of today, for bad driving habits, is silly, the majority of bad driving I see daily is caused by all types of driver. I include members of my own profession, taxi drivers cutting people up, old ladies and gentlemen, dawdling along the center lane of motorways, and of course young men and girls showing off. We have a young apprentice at work , who is a cracking driver, and I have no quarms about travelling with him. If you want to see bad driving, go to certain area's of Bradford, the politicians and road safety campaigners would do well to stand there for a day or two. Remember, people in glass houses.

It's not a half thought out plan by MPs but a government commissioned report by the respected TRL which is evidence based ( what a novel idea for policy making) and has looked at systems across the world. Its recommendations are being examined and there will be full consultation. Brake and the ABI have welcomed it. I agree that there will be difficulties with full implementation but the carnage experienced yearly involving young drivers is worthy of this considered approach and the practical difficulties will be thought about but it's just not right to dismiss it as a half baked idea from MPs.

Extreme proposals like this are almost always watered down or shelved completely. I would be glad to see 'P' plates used for a year after passing the test (at any age) and a limit on the number of passengers that could be carried. As for having to have a passenger over 30 on board at night - how would the police ever manage to carry out all the checks that this would necessitate? That's not just idiotic; it's completely unworkable.

Another half thought out plan by MP's, what happens to young people who do have a job and work shifts.... but of course there are not many young people have the good fortune to have employment.

It is true that young people in their first year of driving have more accidents, but I have not seen any reports saying that these accidents happen between 22:00 and 5:00.

My Institute of Advanced Motorists group (Guildford) teamed with the South London Group for a driving day at a school in Kingston, which was very successful. Also the Fire and Rescue service go into schools with a very hard-hitting presentation which takes the wind out of the cockier youngsters' sails - they get to see the effect of foolish driving on family members of the victims...

What an awful thing to happen goldengirl and how lucky you were. I like the idea of learning to drive at school, maybe as an after school activity now that young people are expected to stay at school for longer.

Perhaps they should be taught to drive at school. I know at one school [can't remember where] they built their own little cars - like go karts - and learned to look after them and drive them in the comparative safety of the playground and car park after school. When they came to drive for real it was hoped that they'd learned some road sense.
One of the problems though is peer pressure / drinking and the thought that 'it won't happen to me'. When I was at school a boy asked me to a party and said he'd pick me up and take me home. I refused and he took someone else [someone I knew], had one too many and wrapped his car round a lampost. The girl was killed. This was a Saturday and he was in school on Monday where, in assembly, the sad news was relayed. We supported him and many of us thought he was very brave to come into school to face us all. I went home after school and bawled my eyes out in shock - it could so easily have been me. There was no counselling in those days.

On re-reading I see this curfew just relates to 'new' drivers but even so I feel it is unreasonable. Additions I would like to see to the driving test - everyone taking their CBT so they become motorbike aware; watching a video giving details of accidents and their after effects.