§ Mr. PikeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the number of accidents and injuries of making compulsory some form of motorway tuition; and if he will make a statement. [67736]
§ Ms Glenda JacksonSince it would not be practicable to make motorway tuition compulsory because many learner drivers are not within reasonable distance of a motorway, we have made no detailed assessment of the likely impact. However, Transport Research Laboratory research1 based on a large sample of drivers who passed their test in 1988 and 1989 estimates that the accident rate for male drivers in their first three years of driving is about four accidents per million miles on motorways compared to over 18 on major roads away from town centres and over 24 on quiet country or rural roads.
Changes to the practical driving test have been announced which will take effect in the Spring. The test will be longer to allow candidates to be assessed in situations more representative of modern driving 335W conditions, including higher-speed roads. That will mean that their training will have to equip them to meet those conditions.
Source:
1 TRL Project Report 111. Cohort study of learner and novice drivers: Part 3, Accidents, offences and driving experience in the first three years of driving.