One thing’s for sure, she’s not scoring one for us women. You can picture the tabloid editor beaming already. Woman! Failed! Theory test! 90 times! Thanks to a freedom of information request, the worst driving student in the UK has indeed been unveiled: she is 26, lives in Southwark, and spent an astonishing £2,790 on driving theory test exams. Call it confirmation bias, but the opinion currently held by Neanderthals about females behind a steering wheel will only be strengthened by the story.

One has to ask, though: how can someone fail a multiple choice test so many times? There are only 50 questions, followed by four answers each. Candidates have to get at least 43 answers right – not an issue if one studies hard – and then face the gruelling hazard perception test (more on that later).

I know those details because yesterday morning found me and a dozen others wiping metaphorical sweat from our brows as we sat in a south London test centre, waiting to make good use of the knowledge accumulated in the past few weeks. Or in my case, days; I’m lucky to be gifted at last-minute cramming and passed. 45/50, if you must ask.

I won’t lie – the test isn’t that easy. The current pass rate for the theory test is 62.9%; people in the US are said to be horrified at our UK process. And while a lot of the expected answers are solidly rooted in common sense (“Q: You are invited to a pub lunch. You know that you will have to drive in the evening. What is your best course of action?” A. Avoid mixing your alcoholic drinks B. Not drink any alcohol at all C. Have some milk before drinking alcohol D. Eat a hot meal with your alcoholic drinks), others were more pointed (“How long will a statutory off road notification last for?”). Some, on the other hand, were downright stupid (“When should you take a call on your mobile phone while travelling?”).

The first written examination was introduced for wannabe drivers in 1996, before being replaced by the computer test in 2000. But is it a truly essential part of the learning process? Talking to my colleagues about the unlucky student who failed so many times this morning, many of them recalled the “good old days” during which you would just be asked a few questions by your driving examiner before passing your driving test: do you know what that sign is? Yes? What about this one? Good, all right then. Now show us how you park.

Take the dreaded hazard perception test – a glorious example of a terribly explained task which many people who did not train for the test with a DVD find impossible to understand. On paper, this sounds relatively straightforward: “Examinees watch 14 one-minute clips filmed from the perspective of a car driver and have to indicate, usually by clicking a mouse button or touching the screen, when they observe a developing hazard.” Because we’re told that each clip is supposed to contain one hazard (with one exception, which contains two), many viewers decide to react only once, when they should instead click every time they suspect they see a developing hazard (which can be anything, from a far-away pedestrian to an incoming truck). Surely such skills would be better assessed by an instructor during actual driving lessons? The same applies to the multiple choice part of test, where it is easy to “luck out” or take educated guesses (which I did on occasion during mine).

Truly, I couldn’t be convinced of the utility of the theory test. It did provide me with some basic knowledge, but it is nothing I wouldn’t have learned on the ground. The hard work lies ahead, in the hours during which I will drive the vehicle accompanied. I truly feel that practice, much like making a good damson pie, cycling or learning to tie laces, is the only way to learn. Perhaps the woman who failed so many times should just be given a free pass.

More than a third of new cars are now sold without a spare tyre. Ford, Volvo and Honda do not sell their cars with a spare as standard. Surely such an important safety item should be included?

To have a flat tyre on the motorway can put yourself and other passengers in danger. Most of us wouldn’t know how to change a tyre, that’s if we have one and would need to wait for break down assistance.

In the early days of motoring, drivers had to change their tyres often with stray horseshoe nails puncturing them. This meant driver’s would often carry two spares. However, in the U.S. spare tyres were prohibited during World War II due to a shortage of rubber.

Drivers that do find themselves lucky enough to have a spare in the 21st Century will usually have a ‘spacesaver’ tyre. These are used in order to save space, reduce cost and lower the vehicles weight. However, they are meant as a temporary measure as they have a short life expectancy and are indented for limited distances.

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Congestion on Britain’s busiest roads has fallen by nearly 20 per cent over the last three-and-a-half years as motorists hit by spiralling fuel prices leave their cars at home.

New Department for Transport figures show significant reductions in delays on motorways and main trunk roads as well as a drop in the overall amount of traffic – and Ministers confirm it is linked to the recession.

Separate data shows that in some parts of the country, delays on a number of major roads are down by almost 50 per cent over the past year.

The Government statistics measure congestion on nearly 100 of the country’s main roads by recording the average vehicle delay for the slowest 10 per cent of the journey.

Congestion hit a high in July 2007, when the figure reached four minutes 19 seconds per ten miles, but in

January it was down to three minutes and 49 seconds, a drop of 17 per cent.

It marks the first reduction in traffic volume since the international oil

crisis crippled fuel supplies in 1979.

Roads Minister Mike Penning said: ‘The falls in traffic volume over the last two years are likely to be linked to the wider economic situation but we recognise that it’s a tough time for motorists as we tackle the country’s record budget deficit.’

A report by Trafficmaster, which supplies information about congestion to car satellite navigation systems via a network of speed sensors on major routes, said that the number of hold-ups last month on the M1 between Leicester and Sheffield had fallen 52 per cent compared with February 2010.

Graham Smith, the company’s data manager, said: ‘The simple explan¬ation is that there are now fewer vehicles on the roads.

There is considerably less commercial traffic and in some cases people are finding other ways to get to work.

‘People are also cutting down on leisure trips or driving to the shops. The cost of fuel is a major factor in people’s decisions about making journeys these days.’

Traffic volumes in city centres such as Leeds have also fallen and the numbers of motorists paying the congestion charge for driving in Central London fell by 500,000 between 2009 and last year, even though there was no rise in the charge.

Figures released by the Office for National Statistics revealed that petrol sales dipped by 4.1 per cent over the three months up to January compared with the same period a year earlier as petrol prices rocketed.

There was an even greater drop of 9.5 per cent in the three months up to December compared with the previous year.

The fall in sales came as the cost of a litre of unleaded petrol soared to an average of 133.17p – £6 a gallon – earlier this month, up from 128.3p in January, and garages reported that many people could afford only half or even a quarter of a tank at a time.

Experts predicted that the cut of 1p a litre announced in the Budget would do little to reverse the trend of declining car use.

RAC motoring strategist Adrian Tink said he was in no doubt that motorists were cutting down on driving as they felt the pinch.

‘We are seeing record numbers of people walking and biking. Evidence from the last couple of quarters is that the sale of petrol is dropping,’ he said.

‘A lot of people are combining journeys, making shorter ones and looking at alternatives like the train.’

He added that road improvements and extreme weather conditions were also factors.

Psychologists have found that women are extremely influenced by what car men drive.

The same man can be presented in two different cars and women will choose him in the more expensive car, meaning that women rate men higher if they drive a more extravagant vehicle.

But what can be said about men rating women. It appears that men are not interested in what car a women drives but more interested in her looks and figure.

Both sides appear to be impressed based on superficial factors, women look for wealth and status and men for good looks.

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Research has shown that drivers are not impressed with a number of service stations across the country.

The main complaints are that there is limited seating and often a pressure to buy products for the shop or cafe.

The toilet facilities are thought to be substandard – dirty and not stocked properly.

Car parking facilities are often limited and where parking is available you often have a time limit or have to pay a fee.

Service stations can often charge higher rates for fuel in the knowledge that drivers filling up will not have many other options. Therefore it is recommended you have enough fuel in the car before setting of on any journey in particular a long one.

On another note, there is a debate as to whether service stations should sell alcohol and during which hours of the day. One petrol station in Coventry has residents fighting a bid to reduce the number of hours alcohol is sold here. There are fears it could cause anti-social behaviour, increased noise levels and crime.

Emily Smith of Britannia Driving School said: “Having a rest, using the loo or purchasing a drink can help towards keeping drivers alert and in control of the vehicle. Service stations are vital tools in ensuring this happens, so despite their appearance take a break.”

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Phllip Hammond, the Transport Secretary, is to plug a loophole which enables motorists to sober up while police find a doctor or nurse to carry out the test.

It is among a series of far reaching changes unveiled as part of the Government’s response to recommendations on road safety made by Sir Peter North, former Principal of Jesus College, Oxford.

However the Government has angered road safety campaigners by rejecting Sir Peter’s call for the drink drive limit to be reduced from 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood to only 50.

Scrapping the right to demand a blood test is seen as a vital tool in preventing motorists trying to play for time in the hope that some of the alcohol will have disappeared from their bloodstream.

The Department for Transport estimates that scrapping the right to demand a blood test could lead to 5,000 more drink drive convictions a year.

Initially the change will mean that drivers will have to take a breath test on their arrival at the police station, the results of which can be used in court.

But the Government will tighten the law still further by introducing machines which will allow evidential breath tests to take place at the roadside.

As previously disclosed by the Daily Telegraph, the Government is to introduce drug-testing machines.

The first devices, capable of testing for an array of drugs including amphetamines, cannabis and ecstasy, could be in police stations by the summer, while a machine capable of carrying out roadside drug tests could be receive Whitehall approval by the end of the year.

This would bring Britain into line with a number of countries

At the same time the Government will update the law to bring drug-driving into line with a number if countries, including Australia, Croatia, and Spain where drivers already face roadside drug testing.

The Government is also to update the law on drug driving, creating a new offence of getting behind the wheel with an illegal substance in the bloodstream.

Currently a prosecution can only be mounted if the police can prove if the illegal drug led to the driver’s performance being impaired.

“It is just as dangerous to drive impaired by drugs as alcohol so we need to send a clear message that drug drivers are as likely to be caught as drink drivers and that drug driving is as socially unacceptable as drink driving has become,” Mr Hammond said.

“The number of drink driving deaths has fallen by more than 75% since 1979. But drink driving still kills hundreds of people so we need to take tough action against the small minority of drivers who flagrantly ignore the limit.”

Motoring organisations gave the Government’s strategy a mixed response. “As the evidential test will be conducted much sooner after drinking, there will be less time for the body to filter out alcohol and reduce the reading,” said Edmund King, the AA’s president.

“This, in effect, creates a reduction in the legal limit. The new process will also mean that policemen making an arrest will be back on patrol sooner, increasing the chances of drinking drivers being caught.”

But Adrian Tink, the RAC’s motoring strategist, condemned the Government’s decision not to cut the drink drive limit

“It’s disappointing news, especially as the Government had a clear mandate from motorists to reduce the legal limit – nearly 90% of drivers told us in last year’s RAC Report on Motoring that they backed a reduction in the limit.

“It really is a missed opportunity to re-enforce that the message that drink-driving is unacceptable.”

Robert Gifford, executive director of the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety, accused the of missing an opportunity to save lives.

“A new lower limit would have helped to support that view, making clear that drinking and driving do not mix,” he said.

“The Government has chosen to ignore this and the clear link between alcohol consumption above 50mg and the increased likelihood of crash involvement.”

Louise Ellman, the chairman of the all-party Transport Select Committee, welcomed the move to tackle drug driving.

But she voiced disappointment that the Government did not back MPs recommendations to allow police to perform targeted swoops on areas where they were likely to catch drink drivers.

Drivers caught smoking behind the wheel, are in danger of being fined and obtaining points on their licence.

If caught driving dangerously due to smoking, eating or drinking, applying make-up etc, you could be convicted of driving without due care and attention.

Not only should you expect a fine of £60 and three points on your licence, but a hefty increase in your insurance premium.

Insurance companies are frowning upon those with driving convictions and charging them anywhere between 20 and 30% more for their insurance. Some companies are even refusing to ensure them at all.

Emily Smith of Britannia Driving School said: “Driving requires your full concentration and in order to control the car properly, both hands should be kept on the steering wheel.”

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Sales of petrol at the pumps have dipped sharply over recent years, according to Government figures highlighted today by the AA.

In terms of weight, petrol sales fell 13.95% between 2007 and 2010.

Sales totalled more than 16.80 million tonnes in 2007 but by last year this figure had fallen to just over 14.46 million tonnes.

Diesel sales rose – going up 6.85% from 12.34 million tonnes in 2007 to 13.19 million tonnes in 2010.

The 2007/10 fall in petrol sales is the equivalent of 3.19 billion litres – equal to 52 days of petrol consumption in the UK.

AA president Edmund King said: “On the face of it, it looks like the UK driver is hitting back against record petrol prices by buying considerably less of it, perhaps by buying more fuel-efficient cars, adapting the way they drive and rationalising their journeys.

“Unfortunately, the reality is that many poorer motorists can’t afford to pay for petrol and are increasingly leaving their cars idle.”

He went on: “The drop in fuel sales puts a squeeze on retailers and fuel suppliers, who face the dilemma that increasing prices to compensate for lower sales volumes simply pushes more drivers into road fuel poverty.

“The Government’s freeze on fuel duty last week will have prevented many drivers being tipped over the edge, but the AA suspects that there will be little improvement on the forecourts come the 3.02p-a-litre duty rise in January.”

Figures have shown that Britain’s drivers are spending around £2300 on their car each year, with this figure set to increase due to recent fuel price increases.

Not only have fuel prices risen but car insurance, tax and car maintenance have all taken a hit and it is affecting all motorists no matter what their age or gender.

This has lead to an increase in the number of motorists purchasing eco-friendly cars.
Drivers must outweigh the costs when buying a car. Despite electric or eco-friendly cars costing more up-front they will cost you less to run in the long-run as opposed to a fuel guzzling motor. Therefore, it may be worth considering a change in vehicle.

Emily Smith of Britannia Driving School said: “No matter what you decide, it’s important to take care of your car and make sure it is road worthy and legal to drive, will are all feeling the pinch but when it comes to safety on the roads we are all responsible.”

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With road safety budget cuts, it is feared that those seriously injured or killed on Britain’s roads will increase.

In recent years the number of people injured or killed on our roads has fallen but in order to maintain these statistics and reduce them further, funding into road safety must remain in place.

Many councils have already reduced the number of lollipop women and men on our roads and have switched off or fail to replace faulty speed cameras.

With many road accidents preventable it is important that money is still allocated to improving Britain’s roads. Equally as important is driver’s taking responsibility for their actions and driving safely.

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