Many new drivers are nervous about driving on motorways. With its inherent need for high speed and high volume of traffic, it can be a daunting prospect for even some of the more experienced of drivers. But that needn’t be the case any more.

If you are a newly qualified driver between the age of 17 and 24, you are entitled to free motorway lessons of 90 minutes, at no charge. The project is titled “Up to Speed” and is currently taking place is Somerset. The initiative is aimed to reduce the number of accidents on motorways for younger, less experienced drivers.

As learner drivers are not allowed to take lessons on motorways, newly qualified motorists have to either take a Pass Plus or venture onto the motorway itself to learn how different this can be to driving on normal roads. “Up to Speed” encourages drivers to attend, as it provides an hour-long workshop (again free of charge) to educate its pupils in the rules and etiquette of motorway driving.

After this, pupils are taken on a lesson of motorway driving for an hour and a half, to learn everything from the basics of motorway driving to the more complex art of manoeuvres and over-taking.

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Nearly 50,000 drivers have had their licence revoked in the past four years under strict rules contained in the 1995 Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act in which new drivers who tot up six points or more within two years of passing their test face an automatic ban.

Male drivers are four times more likely than women to lose their licence in the first two years after passing their test, accounting for nearly eight out of ten bans. Information from the DVLA shows that 4,067 drivers aged 19 or under have points on his licence and 27 of these drivers have six points on their license.

It’s not just new younger drivers who are falling foul of this regime: some 1,608 motorists in their 40s were banned within 2 years of passing their test, 294 in their 50s, 38 in their 60s and 3 over 70s.

Speeding typically results in 3 or 6 points on a driver’s licence, use of a hand-held mobile phone whilst driving or running a red light results in 3 points, racing other cars on public roads results in between 3 and 11 points, driving an uninsured vehicle results in between 6 and 8 points and driving unfit due to drink results in 10 points on a driver’s licence.

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Unfortunately motoring accidents involving teen drivers are a huge problem. Rarely does a week go by that stories aren’t reported of young drivers being injured or killed on UK roads.

Statistics show that young drivers are the most at risk when behind the wheel. Figures have revealed that a third of deaths of 13-19 year olds occurred when in a car in the year 2010, and that over half (56 %) of teens openly admit to driving whilst on the phone, despite this doubling the likelihood of an accident.

Most new drivers, having recently passed their tests, use their newfound freedom of driving as a social activity, often taking groups of friends out for a drive, and often at evening and night-times. However a worrying statistic shows that for every additional passenger inside a vehicle, a 17-year-old driver’s death rate will increase dramatically.

When it comes to teen passengers in a car, only 44% said that they would speak up if their friends’ driving was concerning them, with most content to sit idly by in a vehicle driving dangerously.

All drivers need to exercise caution behind the wheel – but with teen drivers being most at risk, it is no surprise that a new drive is being pushed forward by driving program BRAKES.

These statistics speak for themselves. Take care when out driving, and don’t allow your age to become a factor in you becoming another teen driving tragedy statistic.

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TV presenter Sophie Morgan spoke to Richmond College students on the harsh reality of dangerous driving this week as part of her ‘Licence to Kill’ campaign.

She highlighted the risks of driving too fast and not paying attention and informed students of the statistic that driving is the biggest killer of young people in the UK.

She was paralysed at the age of 18 following a car accident after a house party, despite being sober herself, where she over-steered on a corner.

Richmond Council cabinet member for performance and community safety Tony Arbour said: ‘It is a very imaginative scheme as driving is a very important skill to learn.’

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