So it appears that I am behind the times and have had my head in the sand, as I only just realised at the weekend that the cost of using the Dartford Crossing between Kent and Essex has increased. There I was with my £1.50, when I saw signs saying cars cost £2!

It appears that it still remains free for motorcyclists or any vehicle using the crossing between 22:00 and 06:00 but the cost for cars has increased by 50p and a hefty £1.30 for heavy goods vehicles (HGV’s).

Road Minister Mr Hammond said: “What we are now doing is using the money that this raises to invest in the free-flowing (automated barriers) which will alleviate congestion and indeed looking at the other sort of transport infrastructure improvement that we want to put in place.”

However, if electronic charging is introduced in 2014 as planned, with vehicles not having to stop at barriers, the cost will increase even further. With the cost for cars set to rise to £2.50, 2 axle goods vehicles having to pay £3 and HGV’s £6.

The Labour leader for Thurrock Council, John Kent said: “I think the increase is entirely unjustifiable…there would be an outcry if we put up parking charges by that much.”

Local businesses are also against the new price plan, saying that it is unfair that local residents should receive discounts and not them. Chris Smart who is a Dartford-based haulier said that local hauliers and businesses within the local area should also benefit from sizeable discounts.

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A bus crash that occurred in Virginia last year saw survivors of the crash in court telling the judge of the disturbing day they experienced.

One passenger known as Karrica Finch said “It was almost as if you’re on a roller-coaster ride.”

In court, they described how the bus swerved from side to side and was changing speeds erratically before it crashed along Interstate 95.

The driver – Kin Yiu Cheung has been convicted of four counts of involuntary manslaughter after the crash left four passengers dead and many others injured.

Cheung wrote in a statement: “Maybe I feeling tired and sleepy time.” A passenger sitting behind Mr Cheung said she had heard him talking to someone on his phone stating he doesn’t get enough rest.

It appears that the driver did not intentionally cause the accident and it really was just a horrible accident. But it does highlight the importance of getting enough rest before you drive and pulling over if you feel tired or unwell.

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When you are a parent and your child has past their test for the first time, it’s a great moment. It’s shows them growing up and having their own independence. In about a year or so, they may be going onto university or spend a year backpacking around the globe. It’s the start of the new things.

With passing your test also comes great responsibility and it’s important to keep telling your children this. When you step into a car for the first time, one that you are able to drive, unsupervised – it is very liberating. Unfortunately though, there are too many accidents amongst younger drivers. Drivers who get too confident and feel that they can handle the car at high speeds.

I think that as parents we need to keep telling our children the importance of safe driving. And it’s not always telling them that counts, I think demonstrating that you are a good driver too, makes a big difference.

A driver of a school bus in Cleveland took matters into his own hands when he saw a driver continually drive on the pavement in order to avoid his bus which was unloading children.

Uriah Herron, filmed the driver and the women was taken to court. Shena Hardin, the 32 year old caught in the act, has been ordered to stand at a crossroad wearing a sign that reads: “Only an idiot drives on the sidewalk to avoid a school bus.”

She will be made to stand wearing the sign between 7.45am and 8.45am for two days. She was also suspended for 30 days and ordered to pay court costs.

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There are 10 million Twitter users in the UK and nearly 30 million Facebook users.

We use social media to post things about our life, our break-ups, heart aches, holidays, and woes. But are you using social media when you are driving? For many people the answer is yes. When you are driving home and sitting in traffic it can be tempting to update your Facebook status, or when you’re driving a nice new car you may feel the urge to tweet a picture of it.

But don’t. Ever.

Remember, driving demands your attention, and as tempting as it is to start using your smart phones, you shouldn’t. You need to be able to concentrate on your driving all the time.

Another thing that can be dangerous is trying to change the CD whilst driving. It’s much safer to change the CD before you set out on your journey, that way you are not fumbling around looking for it when you are on the road.

Police officers who secretly filmed up to 500 motorists gathering for “street racing” in Birmingham, have identified over 400 drivers and fined around 200.

PC Paul Bieliauskas said: “Street racers have been making stretches of the A47…no-go roads on Sunday nights into the early hours.

The West Midlands force along with Birmingham City Council have issued around 120 injunctions against some of the motorists caught, prohibiting them from participating in or watching street racing.

Those that break their injunction will be banned from driving and could face fines of up to £5000.

The West Midlands Force wanted to come down heavy on these drivers, worried for the safety of spectators, motorists and innocent bystanders.

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The Institute of Advanced Driving (IAM) has called for British Summer Time (BST) to be changed to provide more daylight hours during the evenings in the later months.

Bringing the time zone forward an hour in both summer and winter would allow Britain to have lighter evenings in the hope that there would be fewer traffic accidents. Statistics from the Department for Transport show that the changing of daylight hours could potentially prevent 80 deaths and around 200 serious injuries on the roads each year.

With the arrival of the darker evenings, road casualty rates increase dramatically as shown by the 2011 figures:

• Pedestrians are 14% more likely to be killed or seriously injured in November compared to the monthly average.

• Cyclist casualties increase by 5%.

• The rate of motorcycle casualties per vehicle mile was 28% higher.

The chief executive of IAM said “Making evenings lighter would save lives. It would benefit all road users….We’d like to try doing a three year trial of the new daylight system. If the trial period proves the new daylight hours have a positive effect it becomes clear it is a system we should keep and continue with. With convincing evidence of the potential benefits, it is only right that we pilot a new system.”

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It is shocking that many people don’t wear seat belts. To put it simply: seatbelts saves lives.

Here is what the Direct Gov say about wearing a seat belt:

Always wear a seatbelt. In a crash you’re twice as likely to die if you don’t.
Not wearing a seatbelt can be a fatal decision even on short, familiar journeys and at low speeds.
Wear your seatbelt correctly so it can offer you the best possible protection in a crash.

Read More about what they say here.

Putting on your seatbelt takes a few seconds, so it is always worth doing. If you have passengers in the car make sure that they belt up to

France already has a lower drink drive limit then the UK, with it being 50mg per 100ml of blood. Along with the lower limits, France are desperately trying to reduce alcohol related accidents and have since introduced a new law requiring all drivers including motorcyclists to carry a breathalyser kit.

For any driver not carrying a breathalyser kit, they will be fined around 11 euros, the fine was due to be implemented from November 1st but has been pushed back until March 2013.

For those drivers travelling to France from the UK, you will be able to purchase breathalyser kits for around £2 and they will be available to purchase at ferry/tunnel crossings to France.

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The fact that the police are carrying out crackdowns shouldn’t mean you should start driving more cautiously – we hope that you already are driving cautiously. The police are on the hunt and going after bad drivers, but we are all – hopefully! – good drivers.

Some people however, just don’t think that the rules apply to them. Recently, as mentioned in this article, police carried out roadside checks on 320 vehicles. Four men were arrested. Some of the reasons were theft, driving with no insurance and for stealing from a charity shop.

What’s more shocking in the above article is that, of the all the people that were pulled over the police, one in three of them were not wearing a seatbelt.

One must always wear seatbelt. Even if you’re only getting in the car for a few moments. Seatbelts save lives, so please wear them.