Theory test is changing 14 April 2020

 From 14 April 2020, the car theory test will include 3 multiple-choice questions based on a short video you'll watch.

 

The change will make the theory test more accessible, to people with a:

·         reading difficulty .

·         learning disability.

·         developmental condition.

Currently, DVSA outlines a case study and then answer 5 questions about it.

This tests your knowledge and understanding of road rules.

This will change if you take your test from 14 April 2020. You’ll watch one video clip instead of reading a case study, and answer 3 questions about it.

How would video clip work

You’ll watch a short, silent, video clip. The video clip will show a situation, such as driving through a town centre, or driving on a country road and answer 3 multiple-choice questions about it.

You can watch the video clip as many times as you like during the multiple-choice part of the theory test.

For Example You can watch the video, answer a question, and then watch the video again before you answer the next question.

The type of questions you’ll answer about the video clip

You’ll answer questions like these:

1.    Why are motorcyclists considered vulnerable road users?

2.    Why should the driver, on the side road, look out for motorcyclists at junctions?

3.    In this clip, who can cross the chevrons to overtake other vehicles, when it’s safe to do so?

For each of the 3 questions, you’ll have to choose the correct answer from 4 possible answers.

Screen Layout :

Theory question

The left-hand side of the screen will show the video clip, with controls for :

·         play the video

·         pause the video

·         move to a specific part of the video on a progress bar

·         watch the video using the full screen

The right-hand side of the screen will show the question and 4 possible answers.

Who would be  affected

All car theory tests willuse video clips from 14 April 2020.

This includes if:

·         you fail a test before then and retake if from 14 April 2020

·         your test is cancelled or moved for any reason, and your new test date is from 14 April 2020

What’s not changing

You’ll still need to study the same books and software to prepare for your theory test.

You’ll still need to:

·         answer 50 multiple-choice questions within 57 minutes

·         get 43 out of the 50 questions right to pass the multiple-choice part of the test

The hazard perception part of the test is not changing. This is where you watch video clips to spot developing hazards.

Other support

You can have reasonable adjustments made to your theory test if you have a:

·         reading difficulty

·         disability

·         health condition

These include:

·         extra time to take the test

·         someone to read what’s on the screen and record your answers

·         someone to reword the questions for you

New research suggests brake dust could be toxic emissions

New Research Suggests Brake Dust Could Be Toxic Emissions: What Drivers in Burnley and Nelson Need to Know

For many years, discussions about vehicle emissions have focused primarily on exhaust gases from petrol and diesel engines. However, new research suggests that brake dust could be a significant source of potentially harmful emissions, raising concerns among environmental experts, health professionals, and road users across the UK.

As more attention is given to air quality in towns such as Burnley and Nelson, understanding the impact of brake dust and how driving habits can influence emissions is becoming increasingly important.

What Is Brake Dust?

Brake dust is produced when brake pads and brake discs create friction during braking. Every time a driver slows down or stops, tiny particles are released into the air.

These particles consist of various materials commonly found in braking systems, including:

• Iron particles
• Copper
• Zinc
• Carbon compounds
• Other metallic substances

Although brake dust has always existed, recent scientific studies suggest that some particles may be small enough to enter the respiratory system and potentially contribute to health concerns.

Why Is New Research Focusing on Brake Dust?

Vehicle manufacturers have spent decades reducing exhaust emissions through improved engine technology, catalytic converters, diesel particulate filters, and the increasing adoption of electric vehicles.

However, researchers are now examining non-exhaust emissions, which include:

• Brake dust
• Tyre wear particles
• Road surface wear
• Resuspended road dust

Some studies suggest that these non-exhaust emissions may become a larger proportion of total vehicle-related pollution as exhaust emissions continue to decrease.

Importantly, even electric vehicles generate brake dust, although regenerative braking systems can help reduce the amount produced.

How Brake Dust Affects Air Quality

Brake dust particles can become airborne and remain suspended in the atmosphere, particularly in areas with high traffic volumes.

Busy roads, town centres, junctions, roundabouts, and traffic lights often experience increased levels of braking activity, which can contribute to higher concentrations of particulate matter.

For residents and road users in Burnley and Nelson, maintaining good air quality remains an important community objective. While traffic-related emissions are only one factor affecting local air quality, reducing unnecessary vehicle pollution benefits everyone.

Can Driving Style Influence Brake Dust Emissions?

One of the most effective ways to reduce brake dust production is through smoother driving habits.

Drivers who frequently accelerate harshly and brake suddenly place greater demands on their braking systems.

Safe and defensive driving techniques can help minimise unnecessary braking by encouraging drivers to:

• Anticipate hazards early
• Maintain safe following distances
• Read road conditions ahead
• Plan for junctions and roundabouts
• Avoid sudden stops whenever possible

Not only does this improve road safety, but it may also reduce wear on brake components and lower maintenance costs.

The Importance of Eco-Friendly Driving

Eco-driving techniques have become increasingly popular among both learner and experienced drivers.

These techniques focus on:

• Smooth acceleration
• Gentle braking
• Appropriate gear selection
• Maintaining consistent speeds
• Reducing fuel consumption

Drivers who adopt eco-driving habits often experience multiple benefits, including:

• Reduced fuel costs
• Less vehicle wear and tear
• Improved passenger comfort
• Lower emissions
• Increased driving efficiency

For motorists travelling throughout Burnley, Nelson, Padiham, and surrounding areas, these skills can make everyday driving more economical and environmentally responsible.

What Does This Mean for Learner Drivers?

Understanding vehicle maintenance and environmental awareness is an important part of becoming a responsible driver.

Modern driving instruction goes beyond simply passing the practical driving test. Today's learners are encouraged to develop driving habits that improve safety, efficiency, and environmental responsibility.

Professional driving lessons help learners understand:

• Observation and anticipation
• Hazard perception
• Smooth vehicle control
• Efficient braking techniques
• Fuel-efficient driving methods

By learning these skills early, new drivers can develop habits that benefit them throughout their driving careers.

Brake Maintenance Is Essential

Maintaining your braking system is essential for both safety and vehicle performance.

Drivers should regularly check for:

• Unusual braking noises
• Vibrations when braking
• Reduced braking performance
• Excessive brake dust build-up
• Warning lights on the dashboard

Regular vehicle servicing can help identify brake-related issues before they become more serious.

Safe brakes remain one of the most important components of any vehicle, regardless of new research into brake dust emissions.

The Future of Vehicle Emissions

The automotive industry continues to invest heavily in reducing emissions from all sources.

Future developments may include:

• Improved brake pad materials
• Enhanced filtration systems
• Advanced regenerative braking technology
• Lower-emission vehicle components
• Improved urban traffic management

As technology advances, manufacturers will likely continue seeking ways to reduce both exhaust and non-exhaust emissions.

Driving Lessons in Burnley and Nelson

At Afzal Driving Lessons Burnley, we believe that safe driving and responsible driving go hand in hand. Our professional driving lessons help learners develop essential skills that contribute to safer roads, better fuel efficiency, and improved vehicle control.

We provide driving lessons for learners across Burnley, Nelson, Padiham, Brierfield, and surrounding areas. Whether you are a complete beginner or preparing for your practical driving test, our structured lessons focus on building confidence and encouraging safe driving habits from day one.

Learning how to anticipate hazards, maintain safe distances, and drive smoothly not only increases your chances of passing your driving test but can also reduce vehicle wear, fuel consumption, and unnecessary braking.

Conclusion

New research suggests that brake dust could be an important source of potentially harmful emissions, highlighting the need for greater awareness of non-exhaust vehicle pollution.

While further research continues, drivers can take practical steps to reduce brake wear by adopting smoother, safer, and more efficient driving habits.

For motorists in Burnley and Nelson, developing strong driving skills benefits not only individual road users but also the wider community. By driving responsibly, maintaining vehicles properly, and reducing unnecessary braking, drivers can help contribute to safer roads and cleaner air for everyone.

If you are looking for professional driving lessons in Burnley or Nelson, contact Afzal Driving Lessons Burnley today and start developing the safe driving habits that will serve you for life.

Should the Motorway speed limit be raised to 80mph ?

Should the Motorway speed limit be raised to 80mph?

Case for Yes

It’s about time the speed limits on motorways and dual carriageways are increased to match  EU states. Driving at  80mph, where it’s safe to do so, would lead to  positive benefits to the economy, travel times, congestion and driver stress .

 With modern technology, cars’ stopping distances are so much less than 20 years ago and  majority of drivers drive at this speed without being prosecuted. In a FairFuelUK survey of 26,000 drivers, 4 out of 5 respondents thought an 80mph limit is now acceptable and should be introduced. But, if the speed limit is to be changed to 80mph officially, there is of course a risk that the new default breaking of the limit becomes even higher. But that could be countered by having severe punishments for anyone driving over 80mph and more police patrols.

 Our motorways are relatively safe to drive  roads on the entire network and, combined with the high safety quality of modern vehicles, it justifies increasing the legal limit.

 With  smart motorways and their information gantries, variable mandatory speed control could be enacted to suit conditions such as bad weather and congestion, so ensuring safety is the paramount consideration.

Case for No

Essentially, the question of  80mph limit is one of safety. Would increasing the speed limit to 80mph make motorways less safe? Evidence gathered in 2012 from our friends at the RAC Foundation found that increasing the limit on motorways could result in an extra 18 fatalities per year and a rise in overall collisions, though of course, journey times would be marginally quicker.
There is  also be concerns about default speeds. At present, the RAC’s research suggests that just over half of drivers admit to breaking the current motorway speed limit, and the average highest speed drivers admit to doing is closer to 80mph. How would we then guarantee that increasing the limit to 80mph would not lead to those drivers already admitting to breaking the current limit, driving at 90mph instead? Finally, smart motorways, where the hard shoulder has been converted into a permanent running lane, are becoming ever more prevalent as a way to increase capacity. While the prospect of breaking down in a live lane with no hard shoulder is already frightening, it would be even more so with vehicles potentially travelling at 80mph towards stationary vehicles.

What do you think ?

NEW ROAD TAX COULD BE PAY AS YOU DRIVE

Motorists could soon be billed for road use on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Government collects about £40 billion each year from   Car taxes like Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) and fuel duty.

The House of Commons’ Transport Committee now wants to open a “national debate” on road pricing ahead of a formal inquiry next year.

Funding from fuel duty might eventually dry up entirely, as the motoring industry moves away from traditional fuels.

A road pricing scheme was last considered in 2007, but the Labour administration abandoned proposals following an online petition attracting 1.8 million signatures.

RAC head of roads policy, Nicholas Lyes said: “There is no question that the existing fuel duty system is on borrowed time as we move towards electric and other zero emission forms of car travel.

“We know through research that drivers are open to a new form of motoring taxation but three-quarters of those we questioned are worried they may end up paying more tax than they do now. For this reason, we believe any new tax should be in place of the current one and not in addition to it.”

Lilian Greenwood, who chairs the Transport Committee, said: “We need to ask how we will pay for roads in the future and in answering that question we have an opportunity for a much wider debate about our use of road space, cutting carbon emissions, tackling congestion, modal shift and how we prioritise active travel.”

The committee is inviting the opinions of drivers and non-drivers to scrutinise the economic, environmental and social impact of road pricing in early 2020.

Road pricing efforts could include tolls, congestion charges, HGV levies, workplace parking levies, plus low emission and clean air zones.

Similar levies such as London’s Congestion Charge raised £1.9bn in 2017.

Yellow Box Fines to hit whole of UK

Drivers across the country will soon be liable for £130 fines for offences like stopping in yellow box junctions, the Government has indicated

 October 2019

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps looks set to hand all local councils legislative powers to crack down on ‘moving traffic violations’ – currently only available to London and Cardiff.

Local authorities know where congestion might require some form of enforcement, particularly in the case of box junctions, so it stands to reason they should be able to improve this through the use of enforcement

While accepting the move broadly makes sense, there are concerns that some councils could use their new powers as a cash cow.

Under the Traffic Management Act 2004, councils must apply for powers to tackle parking, bus lane contraventions and moving traffic violations. Many have taken measures to enforce parking and bus lane contraventions, but not moving traffic violations.

Members of the committee had raised concerns that police officers are too busy policing minor offences to deal with more serious crimes.

Mr Shapps said: “I have been looking at powers outside of London provided to local areas to do some of these things, and think that I’ll shortly be making an announcement.”

Transport for London has been penalising drivers for stopping in yellow box junctions for 15 years. In the 2017/18 financial year alone, it issued £16 million in fines.

In many cases drivers claim stopping was unavoidable – either because of traffic light sequencing, or because of drivers ahead of them blocking their path.

Drivers are allowed to wait in a box junction to turn right, providing their exit road is clear.

Driving Licences revoked in 2018

Driving Licences revoked last year 11953 after getting 6 Penalty Points

Dozens of new drivers had their licence revoked on a daily basis in 2018

Figures obtained via a freedom of information request to the DVLA – show 11,953 drivers had their licence revoked under the New Drivers Act last year, an average of 33 per day.

The legislation states  drivers who get six or more penalty points within two years of passing their test have their licence revoked  If they wish to drive again, they are required to :

·         Re-apply and pay for a new provisional licence and

·         Pass their theory test again, the multiple and hazard perception

·          Practical parts of the driving or riding test again.

 Drivers aged 17-24 years made up almost two thirds (62%) of the total number of licences revoked.

Road Safety Charity Brake is calling on government to do more to ensure young drivers are safe on the roads.

It is also calling for the introduction of a comprehensive Graduated Driver Licensing (GDL) system across the UK. The Government’s announcement that they will explore the issue of GDL further is welcome, but  Swift and decisive action must be taken quickly to introduce GDL across the UK, as a priority to ensure new drivers have the skills and experience they need and to end this tragedy of young people dying on our roads.”

Student Drivers urged to drive when Tired and with overloaded cars

Take Care loading your Car -
https://www.afzal-driving-lessons.co.uk/

StudentsDrivers are reminded to make sure they have loaded their vehicle correctly and carried out basic vehicle checks before setting off to college or university this Freshers season’ 

Highways England is urging those travelling away to study for the first time to make sure they don’t overload their vehicle and to avoid getting behind the wheel while tired. 

Highways England surveyed more than 1400 students ahead of starting  Freshers season. Highways England is the organisation responsible for running England’s major A-road and motorway network. The survey shows

·         6 out of 10 students would carry on driving, even if they may have overloaded their car.

·         7 out of 10 students have driven while tired. 

With many young people likely to be moving away from home to university accommodation, Highways England is calling on students to ‘check it before driving it’ and says people should avoid packing everything .

Richard Leonard, head of road safety at Highways England, said:  

“We want everyone to get to their destination safely and we can all play a part in that. We know that this is an incredibly exciting time for students with many leaving home for the first time. 

“Our traffic officers are there to help get things moving if there’s a problem. But we’d urge all students to make sure they load their car correctly before setting off as they could be endangering themselves and other road users.” 

Advice for loading vehicles correctly, includes:   

• Place heavy luggage on the boot floor, directly behind the rear seat backrest so that it can’t move or fall over in to the free space.  
• Put light luggage on top of the large cases and cover it with a blanket and secure it all with a strap otherwise loose objects can turn into dangerous projectiles, especially if the luggage exceeds the height of the rear seat. 
• Heavy luggage can be safely stored in the space between the front and rear seats.  
• Store small and light objects that you do not necessarily need while driving behind the front seat or in vacuum bags which fit neatly into the storage space under the seats.  
• Put anything particularly heavy in the boot and not unrestrained on the back seat and secure the load if carrying anything externally on the car eg a roof box or bike. 

• Drivers should still be able to see in their mirrors when driving.  
• If people aren’t sure about the car’s official weight limit they should check their handbook. If they feel they are close to the limit they can go to a weighbridge to check.  
• Drivers should make sure they have the right insurance, especially if using other people’s vehicles and are sharing the driving or towing a trailer 

Highways England traffic officer Kelly Rudge is keen all students take time to make sure their vehicles are loaded properly and are ready to take to the road. 

Kelly said: “It’s really important that students check their vehicle before setting off and to make sure that they don’t overload them as it could cause serious danger to themselves and other motorists.  

“Simple things like putting heavy loads in the boot and keeping loose items inside the car secured can all help to keep the occupants safe if the vehicle comes to a sudden stop. The last thing anyone wants is to be hit by an object that isn’t secure.”