Our female driving instructors in Blackburn would like you to really enjoy your training with them and then go on to pass your driving test FIRST TIME

All pupils learning to drive must really master the main parts of driving and below is a list of the main points in becoming a very good safe driver

Licence & Eyesight Check

You must be in possession of a valid driving licence You need to be able to read a number plate at a minimum distance of 20.5 metres (approx 67 feet)

Cockpit Drill

The cockpit drill is just a simple get ready drill that all drivers should go through when they are preparing to move a vehicle. It just consists of a few checks and adjustments before starting an engine. You need to check that the handbrake is on and the gear lever is in a neutral position, make sure all the doors on your car are closed, make sure your seat is in the correct position by adjusting the seat so you can reach and operate the controls safely, apply your seat belt and then adjust all your mirrors so that you get the best possible views to the rear and sides of your car.

The order of seat belt before mirrors or mirrors before seat belt is not really an issue as long as you do your doors and seat adjustments first.

Car Controls

You need to be able to operate all the major controls in a car, these will include your foot controls of accelerator, footbrake and clutch, also the hand controls of steering and handbrake. You also need to know how to operate your headlights, fog lights, direction indicators, windscreen wipers, the horn, all the functions for clearing your widows of condensation, the cars heating system and also if fitted the satellite navigation, air conditioning and cruise controls.

Moving off / Stopping

All drivers need to be able to move away safely in various situations, these will not only include quiet flat roads but also very busy fast roads including uphill and downhill situations, also moving off directly from behind a stationary vehicle known as an angle move off.

Road positioning

One of the skills of an excellent driver is to always be in a good safe position on the road, this will include road positioning in normal conditions, positioning correctly when passing stationary vehicles, lane discipline, various road positioning at different types of road junctions, and the most important one of all in keeping a safe following distance from the vehicle in front.

Effective use of your mirrors

When a driver looks in their mirrors they must know and understand what they are looking for, just looking is not the point, you must look effectively and work out how any action you do could affect any following vehicles.

Mirrors must be adjusted properly, clean and used before any action you are about to take, this will include, before giving any signals, moving off and stopping, any change of direction, altering your speed, before overtaking, and before you or your passengers open any door.

Use of signalling

All drivers must be able to communicate effectively to other road users, this also includes pedestrians and cyclists. The main way this is done is usually with your indicators, however other ways of communicating are by your road positioning, your speed, your brake and reverse lights, your horn and in some situations using arm signalling.

Planning / Anticipation / Awareness

These three words in driving are probably the most important parts of keeping you and everyone else safe. Drivers need to be able to plan ahead and constantly read the road by planning their actions, they need to be aware of their surroundings and be able to anticipate what other road users are about to do and also be willing to adjust their actions as things develop. It is a good idea to drive with what we call a defensive mind where you are always asking the question starting with the two words - WHAT IF?

Use of speed

Nearly all road accidents have the speed element attached to them. As a good safe driver you need to be able pull up safely within the distance that you can see to be clear. Speed limits need to be observed and remember that a speed limit is only a maximum speed allowed and in many situations it might only be safe to drive much more slowly.

Pedestrian crossings

Your driving instructor in Blackburn will teach you all about pedestrian crossings. The main types include Zebra Crossings, Pelican Crossings, Toucan Crossings, Puffin Crossings, Equestrian Crossings and of course School Crossings. There are also many areas where pedestrians regularly cross the roads and these can be where there are central refuge areas, at road junctions and also some newer areas often in town centres known as shared zones.

Remember that pedestrians are very vulnerable and you are in a car so you need to be very responsible because you can cause serious injury and a lot of damage.

Junctions

While having your driving lessons in Blackburn you will come up against many types of road junctions, these will include side junctions, crossroads, T junctions, unmarked junctions, traffic light junctions, roundabouts, mini roundabouts and multi lane roundabouts. The safest way of dealing with all junctions is to follow the main parts of MSM/PSL which when broken down consists of Mirrors-Signals-Manoeuvre and the word Manoeuvre sub-divided into PSL - Position-Speed-Look.

Country Roads

Country roads can sometimes be dangerous, there can be hidden dangers just around bends or over hump-back bridges. There is often a lack of signs and road markings, also very often no footpaths so pedestrians could be on the road. You need to know how to negotiate bends safely and the understanding of your limit points when approaching very sharp bends. Country driving is even more dangerous in the dark and foggy conditions.

High speed roads and dual carriageways

A lot of roads are built for speed including dual carriageways and motorways. Our driving instructors in Blackburn will take you on faster moving roads as and when your skills improve. They will give advice on judging speeds, keeping a safe distance, overtaking procedures and teaching you how to understand complicated road layouts, road signs and lane directions.

Reversing manoeuvres

As a good driver you need a lot of skill when reversing a vehicle. The three main parts in reversing are; control of the vehicle, taking effective observations and being accurate. Our driving instructors in Blackburn will explain all the set reverse manoeuvres that you could get on a standard driving test.

The reverse manoeuvres that you could get include; pull up on the right side of a road and reverse back at least two car lengths, a reverse around a stationary vehicle known as a parallel park, reverse bay parking by reversing into parking bays to the right or left, forward bay parking by driving forward into a parking brake and then reversing back out again. On a normal L test you will only be asked to perform one of these manoeuvres.

The emergency stop

Nowadays this is often referred to as the controlled stop. All drivers need to be able to pull up quickly if something suddenly happens in front of you such as a child suddenly running into the road unexpectedly. If you are reading the road correctly and looking out for the potential dangers then you will very rarely need to do one of these however during your training you will get some practice at doing these.

You could be asked to do one of these on a driving test but they are only performed on every third test.

Eco style driving

Eco style driving is basically the same as fuel efficient driving, it is driving in a style that has less affect on the environment, the advantages in this type of driving can also save you money when you start driving your own car.

The main parts are to drive very smoothly in a style where you are always in the correct gear and not over revving your engine, you should avoid heavy braking by timing situations correctly and where fitted make use of functions fitted to your car like the stop start and cruise control.

Automatic Driving Lessons

WE ALSO CONDUCT AUTOMATIC DRIVING LESSONS IN BLACKBURN AREAS

Learning to drive in an automatic car is now very popular. It may be that you have already tried in a manual car and then realised its not for you, or maybe you have no intention of ever buying a manual car in the future. The good news is that we can help you because we also have automatic driving instructors in Blackburn.

Why learn in an automatic?

Learning to drive an automatic car should be much easier as you don't have to worry about gear changing and clutch control as you would in a manual car, therefore you should be able to progress much quicker and possibly reach the test standard much sooner.

How it used to be…

In the past most learners learnt in manual cars, mainly because UK car manufacturers concentrated on manual car sales, also automatic cars did tend to be more expensive to buy and run, including how much fuel they used, more expensive to insurance, repair and service.

How it is today…

The good news is that nowadays automatic cars are very popular, car sale garages now have an extensive range of automatic cars to buy, also the fuel consumption figures are often very similar to manual cars, with similar servicing costs and insurance premiums.

OUR PRICES OF DRIVING LESSONS IN BLACKBURN

TO BOOK A LESSON JUST CALL OR TEXT US

1. Call us on 07412 180432 and we'll help you

2. Text us on 07412 180432 and we'll help you

Please Note: To check if we can help we require the following info

• Name, Address & Postcode
• Contact telephone number
• Manual or Automatic Tuition ?
• The days & times you could be available for your lessons
• Details of any test date you may have booked including date and time