A legislative committee in America has passed a bill that will allow judges to impose prison sentences for repeat offenders who drink and drive.

Those that have offended between seven and nine times will receive a three year prison sentence and those that have offended 10 times or more will receive a minimum of four years behind bars.

The changes come after current laws leave judges to use their discretion whether or not to impose a jail sentence.

Judges will now also have to impose a mandatory 30 day jail sentence to any driver who is over the drink drive limit and causes an injury.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

Entrepreneurial whiz-kid and self-made billionaire Elon Musk is back in the spotlight this week, after his claims of a joint venture with Google to develop the self-driving car.

The founder of SpaceX and PayPal has announced his talks with Google brains to develop the autonomous vehicle- although he has said that he prefers the title “Autopilot” to “Self-driving”, as the latter suggests the vehicle having a mind of its own.

Musk has said: “Autopilot is a good thing to have in planes, and we should have it in cars.”

Although the partnership seems like a powerhouse for the future of motoring, Musk also suggested a potential flaw in Google’s design; it costs too much.

Musk has stated that rather than Google’s advanced yet expensive sensory system- which uses sci-fi like technology to analyse its surroundings, collating over 1000 pieces of data a second –he would much prefer to use a simpler optical system, which he describes as being “basically cameras, with software that is able to figure out what’s going on just by looking at things”.

It is said that Google is in “technical discussions” with Tesla Motors – of which Musk is CEO – however the likelihood is that rather than collaborating on a joint project to further Google’s Lidar laser tracking system, Tesla will most likely begin to develop its own version of the autonomous automobile, using Musk’s own camera-based concept – although Musk has not ruled out a joint venture with the search engine giants.

Whilst this may suggest a dynamic collaboration of technical geniuses that will change the way we drive forever, or even an exciting space-race style contest to release the first Auto-Piloted car, Musk was quick to quell the rumours he began himself just ten minutes earlier. He tweeted shortly afterwards that this project is “not yet top priority”, that they were “still a few years from production”, and somewhat ironically, “No big announcement here.”

What are your thoughts on this article? Sound off in the comments section below!

A motorist who has killed two cyclists more than 25 year apart, was handed just a five year driving ban.

The Cyclists Touring Club has branded the sentence given to Gary McCourt “scandalous” after he killed a cyclist in 2011.

Audrey Fyfe, 75, who was not wearing a helmet at the time, was knocked off her bike, after Mr McCourt clipped her back wheel. She unfortunately died two days later. The courts found Mr McCourt guilty of killing Audrey however, he was only given a five year driving ban.

Mrs Fyfe’s widower, Ian was clearly unhappy with the sentence and said: “I feel with him having killed two cyclists already he shouldn’t be allowed to drive for life and I don’t think that is unreasonable.”

He went on to say: “How many times is he going to have to kill someone before he is banned for life?”

Cyclists are fast becoming a big part of our roads and more provisions are being made for them with Boris Johnson’s bikes, cycle lanes and bike incentives offered by employers.

So for motorists, it is important to be considerate of cyclists and ensure they adopt a safe driving approach when near cyclists.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

Older drivers are being encouraged to take a specialised course to ensure their safety whilst driving, in a new move by Lancashire County Council.

The course is aimed at drivers of 65 and over, after concerns were raised about the high number of elderly drivers involved in serious road traffic accidents, after new figures were released revealing that 1 in 8 accidents in the area causing death and injury involved an elderly driver. It aims to boost confidence and correct any bad habits picked up over a lifetime behind the wheel.

The figures also revealed that whilst casualties involving younger drivers are in a slow decline, injuries sustained to drivers over 65 whilst driving have remained at a constant 13.4% for the previous 5 years.

Whilst there are few rules are in place regarding aged drivers, all motorists are required to reapply for their licence every 3 years after turning 70, along with a declaration of being in a good state of health.

The course – titled “Drive Safely for Longer” currently has 100 available places remaining. The process couldn’t be easier, with an instructor coming to the drivers home to carry out the course. Approximately 600 people have passed the course in its relatively short lifespan of two years, and more continue to opt for the course.

In 2011, almost 800 people were killed or seriously hurt in vehicle incidents in Lancashire. However the following year, this dropped 11.4% to 704. Whilst these figures suggest that the issue is slowly but surely improving, safety is still a priority for the council, with an 18% rise in pensioners in the area, bringing the total to 211, 200.

Of this population, three out of four said that they intended to continue driving after retirement – despite the fact that driving abilities are proven to decline with age. “Drive Safely for Longer” aims to encourage drivers of an older age to acknowledge their weaknesses or bad habits picked up after years of driving, and refresh their skills as a motorist.

County Road Safety Manager Paul Binks said: “We’re not interested in catching people out and trying to take their licenses away from them. Our only aim is to help older people to remain behind the wheel safely.”

What are your thoughts on this article? Sound off in the comments section below!

A 13 year old boy from Swinton was struck by a police van in 2011 when a Greater Manchester Police Officer ran a red light.

PC Stuart Richmond, was responding to an emergency call at the time, the van did have its lights and siren on at the time and the officer had reduced his speed to 40mph however, the 13 year old, Lucas stepped out into the road and was hit by the van.

IPCC commissioner James Dipple-Johnstone wanted to remind officers that ‘powers and rights must be used with caution and great care.’

He went on to say that: “PC Richmond drive through a red traffic light without any caution and seemingly without any perception of the risk….as a result a young boy sustained life changing injuries.”

The officer has since admitted careless driving and has been fined £350 and given five points on his licence.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

A Scottish Premier League footballer player, Mihael Kovacevic, 25, learnt the hard way after a misunderstanding lead to a four month driving ban.

The player had been convicted of a driving offence in 2011 and along side community service, a fine and a driving ban, he was also ordered to sit his driving test again.

The player who went on to play in Croatia for a period, obtained a licence there and thought the licence would entitle him to drive in the UK and not mean he had to sit the test here again.

Unfortunately, the player didn’t realise that it did not qualify in the UK and as a result had been driving without a licence and without valid driving insurance. Although he had purchased driving insurance, because he did not have a valid UK licence, his insurance was void.

Sheriff Margaret Neilson told Kovacevic that his case was an unusual one but was still a serious charge. She said: “However, I accept that it was not a wilful flouting of the law.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

Google continues to make headlines with its development of the autonomous automobile. Even this week a new image has appeared on the web of how the technology views its surroundings… And this may be familiar to Arnold Schwarzenegger fans around the world.

The image seems oddly reminiscent of the vision of Schwarzenegger’s famous sci-fi character ‘The Terminator’, made famous in the cult 1984 film of the same name. The shot demonstrates the 360-degree field of view of the technology.

The image comes courtesy of Idea lab’s founder Bill Gross, who also adds that the vehicle is capable of gathering almost 1GB of data per second- which translates as roughly 1000 separate pieces of information – as it simultaneously analyses the surrounding area and potential hazards.

Whilst Google launched their Self-Driving Cars three years ago, they were unable to obtain a licence to test their invention on public roads until this time last year. However they have certainly made up for lost time; by covering over 300,000 miles of test drives in Nevada – where the law was passed for autonomous cars to be legally operated – and all of this without one single accident. These findings led to Nevada’s Department of Motor Vehicles declaring last June that the car is just as safe as a human driver – if not even safer.

What are your thoughts on this article? Sound off in the comments section below!

An Indian businessman who owns more than 18 cars worth an estimated four millions dollars allowed his nine year old son to drive his Ferrari.

The boy’s mother said he was allowed to drive the car for his 9th birthday.

The boy, who had his five year old brother in the passenger seat at the time, was videoed by his dad Mohammed Nisham and after posting it on the internet the father was arrested for endangering the life of a child and allowing a minor to drive.

He is currently released on bail.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below:

Recent evidence suggests that almost two-fifths of young people consider driving a vehicle whilst under the influence of illegal drugs to be a more serious offence than drink-driving.

And over 1 in 10 of the age group 18-24 now believe that driving under the influence of alcohol is actually becoming more acceptable, with many stating that it is not deemed as serious as it was five years ago.

This is drastically contrasted with almost two-thirds of 45-54 year-olds who consider a DUI conviction as being much more embarrassing than it was five years ago.

This recent survey, conducted by insurers company 1^st Central, asked 2,000 drivers about their opinions on driving offences, in order to re-evaluate their insurance strategies based upon risk views related to social views of acceptability in terms of driving offences.

1^st Central’s chief underwriting officer had this to say on the issue: “Public attitude to driving convictions influences behaviour and can even act as a deterrent if a conviction is seen as a significant social stigma. We are interested in public attitude as this can be translated into generic risk indicators and helps to inform our on-going thinking related to different underwriting principles.”

The survey has also revealed that a vast minority (6%) consider using a mobile phone whilst driving as socially unacceptable – despite significant advertising campaigns by the Government.

It was also shown that the most acceptable form of driving-related felony is a speeding conviction – and don’t let men blame women for poor driving anymore, as it was based upon the views of both genders that this result was achieved. It was also proven that 1 in 10 of those surveyed had a driving conviction, and almost DOUBLE of this amount were male compared to their female counterparts (13% Male / 7% Female), with 15% convicted of drink driving being male, as only 9% were female.

Those most likely to commit driving offences were in the age range 25-34, with 11% admitting to a conviction, and 17% admitting to drink driving, compared to only 7% of drivers older than this admitting to a conviction, with 80% of 45-54 year-olds being convicted for speeding.

What are your thoughts on this article? Sound off in the comments section below!

Nicholas Lovell, 38 from Oldland Common has admitted two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and one count of driving whilst disqualified after he collided with two cyclists.

Ross Simons, 34 and his wife Clare, 30 both died at the scene after their tandem bike was struck. The pair had been together several years, married for 18 months and friends say where just embarking on IVF treatment to complete their family.

Lovell, was banned from driving at the time of the accident and fled from the crash scene. Louise Cox, 35 who was in the car at the time of the accident has admitted perverting the course of justice after she gave police a false name and description when asked who the driver of the vehicle was.

Det Ch Insp Rachel Williams of Avon and Somerset Police said: “This collision was caused by Nicholas Lovell, a disqualified driver who got behind the wheel of the car and drove at speed, before losing control and striking the couple while they cycled….Nicholas Lovell then ran away from the scene in a bid to escape.”

She hopes that the guilty pleas from both Lovell and Cox reflect that they have taken some responsibility and she hopes the pleas will provide some comfort to their families.

What are your thoughts on this article? Send your views to Britannia Driving School by using the comments link below: