Foreign drivers could be banned from using interpreters to help them through their tests to prevent cheating, under proposals unveiled by Stephen Hammond, the road safety minister

The Government is also ready to scrap pre-recorded voice-overs, currently available in 19 different languages including Polish and several from the Indian subcontinent.

Both options are contained in a Government consultation which will continue until the spring.

“There is a potential road safety risk of drivers not understanding important traffic updates or emergency information,” said Mr Hammond.

“Allowing interpreters on tests also presents the risk of fraud, for example if they are indicating the correct answers to theory test questions.”

According to the Driving Standards Agency nine official interpreters have been banned since 2009 and 861 successful tests have been revoked after evidence of cheating was found during the same period.

Changes in the driving test are designed to mimic real life, scrapping turn by turn directions. It is feared in some cases interpreters could be giving more help than they are supposed to.

With the theory test, interpreters are supposed to translate the questions but there have been occasions when it is believed they have provided the answers as well.

While the issue of fraud does not arise with voice-overs, it is believed that drivers living in Britain should be able to react to road traffic information on the radio or on gantries.

The move was welcomed by Edmund King, the AA’s president. “If the problem with interpreters is one of fraud then more spot checks should be carried out without interpreters to ascertain whether the candidate has been unduly aided. If the problem is to do with cost, then the full additional costs of the service should be met by the candidate.

“We need to balance the importance of learning to drive safely with the desire to help those whose maiden tongue is not English.

“Obviously all licence holders qualified in the UK will need to understand essential road signs and the Highway Code.”

Wlodzimierz Mier-Jedrzejowicz, the chairman of the Federation of Poles in Great Britain, described the proposals as sensible

“We feel that somebody coming to live and drive in Britain needs to know English and a translator should not be necessary.

“If they can’t tell the difference between Bradford and Bolton on a sign, they are going to slow down and bother people. Clearly they need to be able to understand information on roadside gantries.”

What do you think? Should interpreters be allowed for foreign drivers if they are necessary?

Theory and practical driving tests can currently be taken in 21 different languages however, this looks likely to change with the government looking to scrap this in a bid to stop cheating and ensure foreign drivers understand essential road signs and the Highway Code.

Research shows that nearly 145, 000 tests are taken every year in languages other than English and Welsh.

Currently when sitting the theory, you can select to listen to a pre-recorded voice-over in your selected language however, this raises concerns. Road safety minister, Mr. Hammond is said: “There is a potential road safety risk of drivers not understanding important traffic updates or emergency information….all licence holders qualified in the UK will need to understand essential road signs and the Highway Code.”

Nine official interpreters have been banned since 2009 after evidence found them cheating and not only translating the question or instruction but, often providing the answers as well and as a result hundreds of candidates who had passed, have had their licences revoked.

Not only do the government want to ensure drivers understand our rules on the road, but they need to look at the costs of continually developing and up-dating the voice-overs .

The government also hope that  by removing foreign translation it will increase ‘social cohesion and integration’ in Britain.

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

Since 1859, when Belgian J.J. Etienne Lenoir first drove the first motorised automobile, driving has become a staple part of modern civilisation. As much a part of our everyday life as walking or talking, operating a car is an activity that many take for granted, now as mundane a task as answering a phone call or watching television.

However, all that could be about to change.

Google are in the midst of a revolutionary project that could see the end of driving as we know it; the driverless car.

The technology is being pioneered by one of the brains behind the infinitely successful Google Street View, Sebastian Thrun, director of the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. However, don’t be fooled into thinking that this is some Science-Fiction laboratory experiment unlikely to ever see the bright light of day; the Autonomous Car is in the early stages of production already, and the ball is already rolling rapidly towards making the driverless car a commonplace luxury.

In June 2011, the US State of Nevada passed a law allowing the operation of driverless cars within its jurisdiction. This law came into effect last March, and by May the first license for a driverless car had been issued. Since then both Florida and California have followed suit, permitting driverless cars within the state.

However Google are not the only trailblazers in the field of Autonomous cars; Audi has also been testing their own similar project on Nevada highways, and they have even refined the work started by Google, as whilst Google’s technology consisted of bulky computer equipment affixed to the roof of the vehicle, Audi has managed to minimise this to a much smaller mechanism that, at roughly the size of a human fist, can fit easily into the grill of a car, and therefore allows the capacity to retroactively update older models of cars to become driverless. Continental are also well into the way of developing their own version of the technology.

With a variety of companies challenging each other to be the first to release the driverless car, as well as a certainty of other competitors to appear in the not-too-distant future, it may seem that we will be seeing autonomous vehicles before our tax is up on our current pride-and-joys. However I wouldn’t expect to be getting in a quick nap on the driver’s seat on the way to work any time soon; Continental suggests that whilst the project is progressing well, it is likely to be 2025 before your road trip is provided by auto pilot.

It is expected that Japan will be the most likely location to first see the driverless car on its roads in any case, probably many years before the UK or US, and instead of a sudden revolution of vehicles rendering drivers redundant, it is much more likely that aspects of the technology necessary to make the driverless car possible will trickle down into the mainstream gradually throughout the next couple of decades. We already have access to adaptive cruise control, parking aids, lane-departure warnings, electronic stability control and predictive emergency braking. As Continental CEO Elmar Degenhart says; “We are convinced that automated driving has already begun.”

Virtually everyone knows that it is illegal to drink and drive. But I was shocked when recently I learned that a group of my friends were not aware of the penalties.

Not only does drink driving increase the chances of you causing a major accident on the road, affecting your life and those of other people, the law is quite rightly, harsh. Here are the facts.

If you are caught drink driving, you face a minimum 12 month driving ban.
You can go to prison for up to 6 months
The possibility of being fined up to £5000

Not only that, but your lifestyle would dramatically change. Think of the freedom that driving gives you, to drive to work, visit your friends, and drive to the shops. This would all change after you are caught drink driving.

The answer is simple: don’t drink and drive, ever.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DLVA) have dismissed three of their staff after it was found they had posted unsuitable comments on social media sites.

The staff were found to have made comments regarding customers, other members of staff and criticised the DVLA and its services.

The Swansea based company said that none of its employees had done this during working hours as they do not have access to social media sites from the DVLA computers. But they state they will take disciplinary action against those that breach the Data Protection Act.

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

A Plymouth resident caught speeding went to extraordinary lengths to avoid a speeding conviction.

Roger Moore, caught speeding at 51mph in a 40 zone, faked CCTV footage to try and prove he was at home with his vehicle at the time of the incident.

He told courts that he had returned the hire car that he was caught speeding in and that the staff must have a vendetta against him.

He provided CCTV footage which had the date and time he was said to have been speeding. However, photography experts analysed the footage and decided the shadows cast across Moore’s drive were inconsistent for that time of year.

So rather than the £60 fine and possible three points on his licence, he ended up with a 16-week jail sentence, was ordered to pay £2000 in fines and was suspended from driving for two years.

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

It’s official; Drivers that use mobile phones whilst on the road are more dangerous drivers, a new survey reveals.

The US-based AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has suggested from its research that over 2 in 3 drivers often hold phone call conversations whilst driving.

However despite this shocking figure, a large proportion of those questioned have admitted that they consider other drivers on the phone to be dangerous, regardless of their own infidelity.

Whilst almost 90% of those questioned believe that using a mobile phone whilst driving is a dangerous activity and should be discouraged, this does not seem to have had any impact on their own actions.

The research also suggests that drivers who use a mobile phone regularly whilst driving are also more likely to take other driving-related risks, such as:

Driving above the speed limit: 65% admitted to this.
Driving whilst tired: 44% admitted to this.
Sending a text or email: 53% admitted to this.
Driving without wearing a safety belt: 29% admitted to this.

In stark contrast, motorists who do not use a mobile phone whilst driving,

Just 31% reported speeding.
Just 14% reported driving drowsy.
Just 3% reported sending a text or email.
Just 16% drove without a safety belt.

A vast majority slated drivers operating a mobile and a vehicle at the same time, with 95% voicing disapproval. However two out of three young drivers admitted to this behaviour, with over a quarter even admitting to updating their social media whilst behind the wheel!

A study conducted by the University of Utah in 2006 provided proof that driving whilst using a mobile phone renders the driver as incapable a motorist as a highly intoxicated driver due to the extreme levels of distraction it evokes in the driver.

If you need to answer the phone whilst driving, simply find a safe and convenient place to pull over, or wait to call them back; Surely this is a preferable option than crashing your car, wrecking your pride and joy, and potentially injuring yourself or others?

Safe driving from Britannia!

Research has shown that drivers take their eyes of the road and look at other things, on average, every 9 seconds.

The study found that clouds and scenery, mirrors, road signs, advertising and oncoming traffic were the main distractions. They monitored drivers’ eye movements using the latest eye tracking technology.

Even more alarming were the results found by drivers who had satnavs. They were found to spend 22% of the time ignoring the road and looking at the devise.

Don’t get distracted, keep your eyes on the road and keep safe.

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

So the day has arrived for your driving test, you’re all nervous and filled with anxiety.

This is the case for many people who take their test. It varies from person to person; we know those who thrive under a little pressure and we also know of many who can’t handle their nerves on their test day.

So what do you do about it? Here are our top tips.

1) Practice. Yes, practice and practice. You build your confidence through practice.
2) Do mock tests. Your instructor might do them with you but ask for more. Knowing the routes will give you more confidence.
3) Try and take your driving test in the car that you have been practising in.
4) Remember that the examiner is there to do their job, you need to prove to them that you are a safe driver. Be confident, show them that you are a driver that they would want to see on the road.
5) Get a good nights sleep the day before. Feeling fresh rather than groggy will be much better for you. Remember to have all of your documents ready, wear some comfortable shoes and have your glasses/contact lenses to hand if you wear them.
6) I did all of these things and I failed. Remember, if you fail it’s not the end of the world. You just have to do it again and practice some more. The important thing is that you keep going.

Good luck.

The new Ford Fiesta now comes with parental child lock features such as limiting the top speed they drive at.

The technology comes with what’s known as MyKey, this allows parents to place restrictions on young drivers though their car key.

Chris Burgess, a psychology lecturer at Exeter University said: “Young drivers may want to drive safely, but are perhaps less inclined to do so because they feel pressure from their friends or other drivers. MyKey can remove the influence of personal control on the vehicle’s top speed and maximum volume.”

MyKey will allow young people the freedom to drive but allow the parents peace of mind that they are minimising risks attributed to accidents.

Some of the key features will include:

Limiting the top speed

Reducing maximum audio volume

Until seatbelts are fastened the radio will be disabled

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