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msagb.com<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong><br />

The Voice of MSA GB<br />

Issue 335 • <strong>December</strong> 2020<br />

Christmas<br />

Greetings<br />

Best wishes to all MSA GB<br />

members and their families,<br />

from the Chairman and the<br />

Board of Management.<br />

Our head office will close on<br />

Thursday, <strong>December</strong> 24 and<br />

reopen on Monday, January 4.<br />

Trainers and<br />

testers back<br />

on the roads<br />

See pg 8-9<br />

COVER STORY<br />

The future<br />

of testing...<br />

As digital tech expert takes over at<br />

DVSA, will VR transform theory tests?<br />

We work for all Driver Trainers. Want to join? See pg 47 for a special introductory offer


from the Chairman and the<br />

Board of Management.<br />

For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

At the end of a horrible year,<br />

let’s hope for glad tidings in ’21<br />

Colin Lilly<br />

Editor, <strong>Newslink</strong><br />

I began writing this editorial the day after<br />

the last issue was published (October<br />

31). It was becoming clear then that<br />

another national lockdown was looming<br />

– as it proved. Deja vu for driver trainers.<br />

I confess at that point I felt a lot of<br />

anger towards the large number of people<br />

who have disregarded the restrictions<br />

simply to pursue their usual behaviour,<br />

and in turn feel justified by the<br />

conspiracy theorists’ statements.<br />

Government praise for the efforts of the<br />

‘Great British People’ are difficult to<br />

swallow when there are clearly many<br />

who do not follow the rules.<br />

Two days later our fears were realised<br />

when it was confirmed that, once again,<br />

driver training and testing would be<br />

suspended for at least a month.<br />

It did seem strange that in the south<br />

west, driver training was stopping just as<br />

training 15 miles away across the Severn<br />

estuary, in areas with much higher<br />

infection rates, it was starting up again.<br />

So much for all being in this together.<br />

I have received a much larger than<br />

normal number of enquiries from<br />

potential learners recently. This indicates<br />

the level of frustration among those<br />

wishing to drive. What ray of hope can<br />

we give them?<br />

I know that most of you will have been<br />

behaving very responsibly and if you are<br />

following guidelines, are creating a safe<br />

learning environment while working<br />

under potentially risky circumstances.<br />

Keep up the good work. I suspect there<br />

are few other professions that can claim<br />

to provide as safe an environment.<br />

As I finish this piece (November 23)<br />

the confirmation of the end of the second<br />

lockdown has been confirmed, to be<br />

replaced by an enhanced three tier<br />

system. What that means to driver<br />

training and testing remains to be seen.<br />

Personally, I cannot wait to roll my<br />

sleeve up for a vaccine. If it happens that<br />

the conspiracy theorists are right, and I<br />

am injected with a microchip, could it be<br />

much worse?<br />

But as we approach the end of this<br />

horrendous year, probably the worst ever<br />

for driver training since the Second World<br />

War, let’s try and celebrate, but not<br />

forget those that did not make it.<br />

Celebrate safely and perhaps we can<br />

look forward to next year; possibly a<br />

holiday or a complete family Christmas<br />

2021. Without that care, the<br />

Welcome to your<br />

digital, interactive<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong><br />

See a pale blue box in any article<br />

or on an advert? It it contains a<br />

web address or email, it’s<br />

interactive. Just click and it will<br />

take you to the appropriate<br />

web page or email so you can<br />

keep in touch easier.<br />

You’ll also<br />

find these<br />

panels<br />

across the<br />

magazine: just click for more<br />

information on any given subject.<br />

COVER STORY<br />

Cover photograph:<br />

The DVSA is trialling a<br />

Virtual Reality version of<br />

the theory test – at the<br />

same time as it appoints<br />

a new Chief Executive<br />

with a digital background<br />

See pgs 6 and 17<br />

To get the<br />

full story,<br />

click here<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong><br />

The Voice of MSA GB<br />

Issue 335 • <strong>December</strong> 2020<br />

The future<br />

of testing...<br />

COVER STORY<br />

As digital tech expert takes over at<br />

DVSA, will VR transform theory tests?<br />

Christmas<br />

Greetings<br />

Best wishes to all MSA GB<br />

members and their families,<br />

Our head office will close on<br />

Thursday, <strong>December</strong> 24 and<br />

reopen on Monday, January 4.<br />

Trainers and<br />

testers back<br />

on the roads<br />

We work for a l Driver Trainers. Want to join? See pg 47 for a special introductory o fer<br />

repercussions of 2020 will be felt for a<br />

very long year.<br />

Wishing you and your families a very<br />

happy Christmas and an improved New<br />

Year. Look forward with the hope of a<br />

better year ahead.<br />

CONTACT<br />

To comment on this article or any other<br />

issue on driver training and testing,<br />

contact Colin via 01934 514336 or via<br />

editor@msagb.com<br />

See pg 8-9<br />

msagb.com<br />

So long, 2020: Don’t call us, we’ll call you<br />

Peter Harvey mbe<br />

National Chairman<br />

MSA GB<br />

Well, here we are at the end of 2020,<br />

and thank goodness for that, I hear you<br />

all say.<br />

This has got to have been the worst<br />

year I have had in my 43 years in the<br />

profession thanks to Covid-19. However,<br />

let’s try to look on the positive side and to<br />

the future; it seems the new vaccines to<br />

combat the virus are going to be available<br />

around the time you are reading this<br />

edition so, hopefully by late spring or<br />

early summer, we can all look forward to<br />

fewer restrictions and consequently a<br />

better and healthier 2021.<br />

At the time of writing this, the leaders<br />

of our four nations had just announced a<br />

relaxation of rules to allow some more<br />

contact with our families and friends<br />

between <strong>December</strong> 23rd and 27. I am<br />

sure that will be most welcome to most of<br />

us, but we must still be careful and look<br />

after each other.<br />

I would just like to end the year by<br />

thanking our team at head office, our area<br />

committees, <strong>Newslink</strong> editors and, of<br />

course, the publishing team for all their<br />

hard work in keeping you all updated on<br />

the many changes we have had to adjust<br />

to this year.<br />

I’d also like to thank you, our members,<br />

for your continued support through a<br />

time, which I know, has been really<br />

challenging for most of you. We have had<br />

many positive responses to the work we<br />

have done during 2020, and I’m glad it<br />

has been appreciated.<br />

I will sign off by wishing you all a very<br />

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year,<br />

however you may decide to celebrate it.<br />

Just remember: Let’s do it carefully –<br />

and look forward to a better 2021.<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

03


Inside this issue<br />

10<br />

14<br />

24<br />

News<br />

The waiting room is... open!<br />

DVSA announces the re-opening of<br />

more waiting rooms – page 6<br />

Covid-19 update: the latest<br />

position for ADIs<br />

Driver training and testing is back on<br />

the roads – page 8<br />

Former digital tech chief to<br />

lead the DVSA<br />

Loveday Ryder is the DVSA’s new Chief<br />

Executive – page 10<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong><br />

The Voice of MSA GB<br />

PACTS report reveals biggest<br />

danger vehicle on the roads...<br />

... And surprisingly, it’s not a passenger<br />

car! – page 12<br />

Road safety updates<br />

High-mileage drivers still happy to<br />

speed... but the tailgating message<br />

might be getting through – page 14<br />

Smart motorways...<br />

... still leave the motoring public<br />

confused, says report – page 16<br />

We love our cars again!<br />

The pandemic has reinforced the UK’s<br />

love of its cars and knocked back the<br />

appeal of public transport – page 22<br />

36<br />

The Motor Schools Association<br />

of Great Britain Ltd<br />

Head Office:<br />

Chester House,<br />

68 Chestergate,<br />

Macclesfield<br />

Cheshire SK11 6DY<br />

T: 01625 664501<br />

E: info@msagb.com<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong> is published monthly on behalf of the MSA<br />

GB and distributed to members and selected<br />

recently qualified ADIs throughout Great Britain by:<br />

Chamber Media Services,<br />

4 Hilton Road, Bramhall, Stockport,<br />

Cheshire SK7 3AG<br />

Editor/Production: Rob Beswick<br />

e: rob@chambermediaservices.co.uk<br />

t: 0161 426 7957<br />

Advertising sales: Colin Regan<br />

e: colinregan001@yahoo.co.uk<br />

t: 01942 537959 / 07871 444922<br />

Views expressed in <strong>Newslink</strong> are not necessarily<br />

those of the MSA GB or the publishers.<br />

Although every effort is<br />

made to ensure the<br />

accuracy of material<br />

contained within this<br />

publication, neither MSA<br />

GB nor the publishers can<br />

accept any responsibility<br />

for the veracity of claims<br />

made by contributors in<br />

either advertising or<br />

editorial content.<br />

©2020 The Motor Schools<br />

Association of Great<br />

Britain Ltd. Reprinting in<br />

whole or part is forbidden<br />

without express<br />

permission of the editor.


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

26<br />

Features<br />

Johnson’s green agenda threatens<br />

to melt away ICE appeal<br />

Are you ready to ditch buying a new diesel or<br />

petrol car as early as 2030? What impact<br />

will the Prime Minister’s new green motoring<br />

agenda have on ADIs? – page 18<br />

How about a little bit of ‘R-A-R’<br />

Steve Garrod on the wisdom of learning that<br />

receives, apply and reuses – page 28<br />

Time to ditch the L-test<br />

One ADI has an interesting idea... – page 30<br />

Keep in<br />

touch 1<br />

Keep in touch:<br />

Just click on the icon<br />

to go through to the<br />

relevant site<br />

18<br />

If you have updated your<br />

address, telephone<br />

numbers or changed your email<br />

address recently, please let us<br />

know at head office by emailing<br />

us with your new details and<br />

membership number to<br />

info@msagb.com.<br />

If you can’t find your<br />

membership number, give us a<br />

ring on 01625 664501.<br />

2<br />

Regional<br />

Life must go on... it says so in the regs!<br />

East Midlands – page 33<br />

North West – and some lessons from the past – page 33<br />

Another spanner in the works...<br />

Scotland – page 36<br />

Theory test certificate holders losing out<br />

West Midlands – page 38<br />

South East – new chair takes helm – page 39<br />

Graduated licences: A good chance missed<br />

Western – page 40<br />

Q& A... with Kris Ford<br />

A little bit of back story from Western member – page 42<br />

Manual or automatic?<br />

The inspiration of youth helps Rod Came<br />

gear up to learn something new – page 32<br />

Follow MSA GB on social media<br />

30<br />

Keep in<br />

contact with<br />

the MSA<br />

MSA GB area contacts are<br />

here to answer your<br />

queries and offer any<br />

assistance you need.<br />

Get in touch if you have<br />

any opinions on how MSA<br />

GB is run, or wish to<br />

comment on any issue<br />

affecting the driver<br />

training and testing<br />

regime.<br />

n National Chairman:<br />

Peter Harvey MBE<br />

natchair@msagb.com<br />

n Deputy National<br />

Chairman: Geoff Little<br />

deptnatchair@msagb.com<br />

n Scotland:<br />

Alex Buist<br />

chair.os@msagb.com<br />

n North East:<br />

Mike Yeomans<br />

chair.ne@msagb.com<br />

n North West:<br />

Graham Clayton<br />

chair.nw@msagb.com<br />

n East Midlands:<br />

Kate Fennelly<br />

chair.em@msagb.com<br />

n West Midlands:<br />

Geoff Little<br />

chair.wm@msagb.com<br />

n Western:<br />

Arthur Mynott<br />

chair.ow@msagb.com<br />

n Eastern:<br />

Paul Harmes<br />

chair.oe@msagb.com<br />

n Greater London:<br />

Tom Kwok<br />

chair.gl@msagb.com<br />

n South East:<br />

Terry Cummins<br />

chair.se@msagb.com<br />

n South Wales:<br />

All enquiries to<br />

info@msagb.com<br />

n <strong>Newslink</strong>:<br />

All enquiries to<br />

editor@msagb.com or<br />

rob@chambermedia<br />

services.co.uk


News<br />

DVSA takes waiting rooms open to over 100<br />

Following the successful reopening of 28<br />

driving test centre waiting rooms at the<br />

end of October and in November, the<br />

DVSA announced a further 93 waiting<br />

rooms will re-open on Friday, <strong>December</strong> 4.<br />

The availability of waiting rooms will<br />

be kept under review in line with any<br />

further national or local restrictions.<br />

ADIs using the waiting rooms must<br />

follow waiting room guidance (below),<br />

which is also on GOV.UK.<br />

The number of people allowed in each<br />

waiting room will depend on its size, and<br />

the maximum number will be shown on<br />

a sign on the door.<br />

What are the rules for using waiting<br />

rooms?<br />

Pupils are not allowed in test centre<br />

waiting rooms. However, they may still<br />

use the toilet where provided and the<br />

examiner will still meet you and your<br />

pupil at the vehicle.<br />

If your local test centre is in the latest<br />

roll-out you will receive an email from<br />

the DVSA to explain the measures that<br />

have been put in place to help keep<br />

everyone waiting at the site safe.<br />

These measures will include:<br />

• wearing face covering at all times<br />

inside the waiting room<br />

• recording a visit by scan the QR<br />

code and ‘check in’ or recording it on a<br />

paper log<br />

• asking visitors to wipe down touch<br />

points when they enter the waiting room<br />

and before they leave<br />

Your safety and that of candidates and<br />

staff is a priority and the DVSA is<br />

working to safely open up other waiting<br />

rooms around the country. You can<br />

provide feedback on the Covid-secure<br />

procedures in waiting rooms at<br />

waitingroom.feedback@dvsa.gov.uk.<br />

Who’s open? Full list of DTCs<br />

where waiting rooms are open<br />

Test centres marked with an<br />

asterisk* re-open on Friday,<br />

<strong>December</strong> 4; rest are open now<br />

Aberdeen North<br />

Aberystwyth<br />

Airdrie<br />

Alness<br />

Alnwick*<br />

Aylesbury*<br />

Banbury*<br />

Barnet*<br />

Barnstaple*<br />

Basildon*<br />

Berwick Upon Tweed*<br />

Beverley*<br />

Bletchley*<br />

Bodmin*<br />

Bolton*<br />

Borehamwood*<br />

Brentwood*<br />

Bristol Avonmouth*<br />

Burton On Trent*<br />

Caernarfon GVTS<br />

Cambridge Brookmount Court<br />

Cambridge Hardwick*<br />

Canterbury*<br />

Cardington*<br />

Chelmsford*<br />

Chertsey*<br />

Chesterfield<br />

Chichester*<br />

Chippenham*<br />

Clacton On Sea*<br />

Colchester*<br />

Coventry*<br />

Culham LGV*<br />

Darlington LGV*<br />

Darlington<br />

Dudley*<br />

Elgin<br />

Enfield LGV*<br />

Enfield*<br />

Exeter LGV*<br />

Farnborough*<br />

Galashiels<br />

Garretts Green<br />

Gateshead*<br />

Gillingham GVTS<br />

Gillingham*<br />

Glasgow Baillieston<br />

Glasgow Shieldhall<br />

Greenham*<br />

Guildford - car testing*<br />

Guildford - vocational building*<br />

Haddington<br />

Hastings*<br />

Herne Bay*<br />

Hexham*<br />

High Wycombe *<br />

Hither Green*<br />

Hornchurch*<br />

Inverness<br />

Inverness<br />

Ipswich*<br />

Isleworth*<br />

Kirkham LGV*<br />

You can keep on top of<br />

which waiting rooms are<br />

re-opening at<br />

Lancing*<br />

Lee On The Solent*<br />

Leicester Wigston*<br />

Letchworth*<br />

Livingston GVTS<br />

Lowestoft*<br />

Ludlow*<br />

Macclesfield*<br />

Maidstone<br />

Melton Mowbray*<br />

Mitcham*<br />

Newbury*<br />

Newport Gwent<br />

Newtown<br />

Norris Green *<br />

Norwich Jupiter Road*<br />

Nottingham Chilwell *<br />

Oswestry *<br />

Pembroke Dock<br />

Peterhead<br />

Pinner*<br />

Portsmouth*<br />

Preston*<br />

Rookley LGV*<br />

Rugby*<br />

Salisbury*<br />

Sevenoaks*<br />

Sheffield Handsworth*<br />

Shrewsbury*<br />

DVSA DTC waiting<br />

rooms update here<br />

Skegness*<br />

Slough*<br />

South Yardley*<br />

Southampton Botley LGV*<br />

Speke*<br />

St. Albans*<br />

Stafford*<br />

Sunderland*<br />

Swindon LGV*<br />

Swindon<br />

Taunton*<br />

Telford*<br />

Tilbury*<br />

Uxbridge*<br />

Walton LGV*<br />

Warwick *<br />

Watford*<br />

Wednesbury*<br />

Weedon*<br />

Whitby*<br />

Wick<br />

Widnes<br />

Wood Green*<br />

Worcester*<br />

Workington*<br />

Worksop*<br />

Wrexham<br />

Yeading*<br />

06<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


News<br />

Covid update: the complete picture<br />

After days of prevarication and rumours<br />

of behind the scenes rows between the<br />

Cabinet Office, the Health & Safety<br />

Executive, the Department for Transport<br />

and the DVSA, it was finally agreed just<br />

24 hours before England’s second<br />

lockdown officially finished that ADIs<br />

could resume driver training, and the<br />

DVSA to restart testing. The ruling covers<br />

all tiers in England; the situation in<br />

Wales and Scotland is outlined right.<br />

The delay in informing ADIs of such a<br />

crucial decision affecting their livelihoods<br />

was described by MSA GB national<br />

chairman Peter Harvey as “shocking,<br />

unprofessional and deeply worrying.”<br />

“The Prime Minister said that<br />

lockdown was ending on <strong>December</strong> 2<br />

back on November 23, so I am baffled<br />

as to why it took the DVSA a further<br />

week to confirm that driving tests and<br />

training could begin again,” said Peter.<br />

“We have sent the DVSA a number of<br />

questions on our members’ behalf over<br />

the delay, but the poor communication<br />

we have all received in the last week is<br />

top of the list.”<br />

Peter added: “The lack of prior notice<br />

for the recommencement of tests and<br />

failure to build in time for learners to get<br />

practice in before their tests makes<br />

testing a lottery. Many of our pupils will<br />

not be test ready after a month off the<br />

road, unless they have been able to have<br />

private practice as part of their usual<br />

journeys to and from college or work.<br />

“However, if you have pupils who have<br />

been keeping up with private practice in<br />

THE OFFICIAL POSITION - ENGLAND<br />

Lockdown restrictions expired at 00.01am, <strong>December</strong> 2. After that all categories<br />

of training can restart, in all tiers.<br />

Driving tests recommenced on <strong>December</strong> 2 and tests are now available to book<br />

online if an instructor feels they have candidates who are ready to take the test.<br />

In Tier 3 areas of England the number of tests will be reduced to five tests a day<br />

to help lessen examiners’ exposure; the first test of the day will not be available.<br />

However, examiners in Tiers 1 & 2 will continue to conduct six tests a day.<br />

The DVSA is looking into ways of reducing the long waiting lists at test centres<br />

across the country and will give an update on that soon.<br />

The updates to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) for all test categories<br />

have also been published and are included below.<br />

IN WALES<br />

At the moment all driving lessons and motorcycle training can take place, and all<br />

categories driving tests can be booked. However, this situation is likely to change<br />

this week: see the MSA GB website for details.<br />

IN SCOTLAND<br />

Driving lessons and motorcycle training can take place in council areas in local<br />

Covid protection levels of 0-3. You must not carry out driving lessons or<br />

motorcycle training in council areas in protection level 4, unless it is with<br />

someone from your household. You must not travel out of Level 4 to teach<br />

somewhere else. More information on the Covid-19 local protection levels and<br />

where your authority sits in them can be found at:<br />

www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-protection-levels/<br />

Those areas currently in Level 4 will have their status revised on <strong>December</strong> 11.<br />

lockdown and are ready for not just the<br />

test but independent driving as a whole<br />

and have a justifiable need to be licensed<br />

more immediately, it is worth checking<br />

the system to see if you can secure one<br />

of these tests test slots for them.”<br />

He was also concerned that the<br />

chaotic situation would encourage pupils<br />

who were not fully prepared for their<br />

L-test to just turn up and have a go in<br />

the hope of scraping a pass.<br />

But that situation “doesn’t suggest a<br />

very professional set-up, does it?” said<br />

Peter. “I thought we had gone past the<br />

days when pupils took a test hoping to<br />

fluke a pass, but without doubt that is<br />

what many pupils will be looking at<br />

doing this week.”<br />

Standard Operating Procedures... the latest guidance<br />

Driving Test SOP<br />

Motorcycle Test SOP<br />

Driving test<br />

SOP<br />

Motorcycle<br />

test SOP<br />

Vocational Test SOP<br />

Vocational<br />

test SOP<br />

ADI Part 2 Test<br />

ADI Part<br />

2 Test<br />

ADI Part 3 Tests and Standard Checks<br />

Part 3s,<br />

Standard<br />

Checks<br />

08<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

Examiner advice<br />

for L-tests<br />

The DVSA has shared with NASP the<br />

latest advice to examiners. The<br />

information contained here will help you<br />

prepare your pupils for their tests<br />

Back to work for most ADIs: but<br />

DVSA has questions to answer<br />

The DVSA held a webinar with<br />

members of NASP on Wednesday, 2nd<br />

<strong>December</strong>. During this session a<br />

number of questions were directed to<br />

senior DVSA staff members.<br />

n Why has it taken so long for<br />

communications on the ending of this<br />

second lockdown in England taken so<br />

long to be settled?<br />

n The DVSA had four weeks of<br />

lockdown during which it could<br />

contingency plan what a tiered<br />

approach would look like and make<br />

provision for when this period ended:<br />

why was this not done earlier and<br />

communicated to ADIs?<br />

n How are ADIs expected to be able<br />

to manage a diary and a business on<br />

this short a notice?<br />

n Why ADIs weren’t allowed to go<br />

back to work one to two weeks early to<br />

help prepare learners for tests in early<br />

<strong>December</strong>?<br />

n Why has the DfT ruled it is not safe<br />

on road safety grounds to extend theory<br />

certificates but it’s OK to allow pupils to<br />

go for a L-test with no period of<br />

refresher training beforehand and<br />

with only one day’s notice?<br />

Wear a face covering in Scotland<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

n Will DVSA offer any compensation<br />

to people for loss of earnings due to<br />

their failure to communicate early<br />

enough?<br />

n How do we manage expectations<br />

and communication of possible test<br />

slots available; will all the slots<br />

available be utilised?<br />

n Will DVSA continue to refund test<br />

fees on short notice cancellations and<br />

across the categories?<br />

n Why have some test centre staff<br />

briefed local ADIs about this situation<br />

before it was officially released?<br />

n Some ADIs want temperature<br />

checks of examiners before they get in<br />

their car. Why is this not being allowed?<br />

n Will examiners be prioritised for<br />

vaccinations, and what is DVSA policy<br />

on refusal? If examiners do get priority,<br />

will DVSA put forward a case for<br />

instructors to be treated the same?<br />

n What strategies do DVSA have for<br />

catching up on the backlog of tests?<br />

n Can we have an update on Part 2,<br />

3 and Standards Checks, Riders &<br />

Vocational training and testing: what’s<br />

happening with them?<br />

To watch the webinar, click here<br />

In Scotland, ADIs and pupils must wear face coverings during driving lessons<br />

and practice sessions. If you do not wear a face covering, you must have a good<br />

reason, eg:<br />

• you have a physical or mental illness, impairment or disability<br />

• wearing it would cause you severe distress<br />

• you and the person you’re teaching live in the same household<br />

Wearing glasses does not count as a good reason. You can be fined £60 if you<br />

do not wear a face covering.<br />

Vehicle ventilation<br />

n The car must have the windows open<br />

throughout the test. Candidates are<br />

advised to wear clothing suitable for the<br />

weather.<br />

n At least two windows on opposite<br />

sides of the car must be open throughout<br />

the test. Any combination of windows<br />

can be opened, for example, one from<br />

the front and back.<br />

n In bad weather, you do not need to<br />

open the windows so far that it makes<br />

the inside of your car overly wet.<br />

Vehicle cleanliness<br />

You must clean the inside of your car<br />

before your test. This means:<br />

n tidying any unnecessary items away<br />

from the dashboard, footwells, door<br />

pockets, cup holders and seats.<br />

n wiping down the dashboard and car<br />

controls and touchpoints such as door<br />

handles and seat belt controls<br />

The examiner will do an additional clean<br />

of some surfaces.<br />

Completing insurance and residency<br />

declaration<br />

n Pupils will be able to fill out an<br />

insurance and residency declaration and<br />

have their licence checked inside the car<br />

in bad weather.<br />

n Please tell your pupils to bring a pen<br />

with them to complete the paperwork.<br />

Examiners will only offer a pen if they do<br />

not have one, which will be wiped with<br />

an anti-viral wipe on return.<br />

For more information:<br />

NASP has all the latest and<br />

updated guidance here<br />

(click button right)<br />

On theory tests<br />

(click button right)<br />

L- tests<br />

(click button right)<br />

Instructor guidance<br />

(click button right)<br />

09


News<br />

Former digital technology chief to head DVSA<br />

Loveday Ryder will become the DVSA’s<br />

Chief Executive on January 1 2021, after<br />

current chief Gareth Llewellyn steps<br />

down.<br />

Department for Transport Permanent<br />

Secretary Bernadette Kelly said: “I’m<br />

delighted to welcome Loveday to the<br />

department.<br />

“The DVSA’s work affects everyone in<br />

the country, and Loveday’s wide<br />

range of business change<br />

and performance<br />

improvement experience<br />

will be invaluable in<br />

helping the agency<br />

overcome the<br />

operational challenges<br />

created by the impact of<br />

the coronavirus pandemic.<br />

“I would like to express my<br />

thanks to Gareth Llewellyn for his<br />

immense contribution as Chief Executive,<br />

and wish him every success for the<br />

future.”<br />

Ms Ryder joins from BPDTS Ltd,<br />

where she was CEO. BPDTS provides<br />

specialist digital technology services to<br />

the Department for Work and Pensions.<br />

Previously she spent 12 years in the<br />

Ministry of Justice, where she<br />

successfully served in several senior<br />

roles in organisation design, change<br />

management and programme<br />

delivery.<br />

Ms Ryder said: “I’m thrilled<br />

to be joining DVSA, whose<br />

people are so passionate about<br />

helping everyone stay safe on<br />

Britain’s roads.<br />

“I want to help build on the<br />

successes already achieved through<br />

DVSA’s 5-year strategy. DVSA will<br />

continue to change, improve and<br />

modernise services for customers,<br />

embrace smarter ways of working and<br />

make the most of new technology while<br />

making sure road safety remains at the<br />

heart of everything we do.<br />

“I’m looking forward to supporting<br />

DVSA colleagues in the vital work they<br />

do to help achieve the vision we all share<br />

- safer drivers, safer vehicles and safer<br />

journeys for all.<br />

MSA GB chairman Peter Harvey said:<br />

“We wish Ms Ryder every success in her<br />

new role. Top of her priority list has to be<br />

tackling the waiting lists that are forming<br />

around theory and L-tests.”<br />

He also paid tribute to outgoing Chief<br />

Executive Gareth Llewellyn “for his hard<br />

work in the cause of road safety and<br />

driver improvement, and support for<br />

driver trainers.”<br />

ADIs asked to shape<br />

the future of<br />

autonomous cars<br />

A major new survey has been<br />

launched to assess how motorists<br />

will accept and use connected,<br />

co-operative and autonomous and<br />

automated transport in the future.<br />

IAM RoadSmart is part of this<br />

EU-funded research project, which<br />

is called Drive2theFuture. The<br />

outcome of the survey will also<br />

assist the developers of these<br />

technologies to understand and<br />

meet users’ needs and wants.<br />

Driver trainers’ views are very<br />

important to this project, and IAM<br />

RoadSmart has asked MSA GB<br />

members to complete a short online<br />

survey which will allow the<br />

consortium to consider their views<br />

going forward. The survey is being<br />

circulated to driver trainers and<br />

driving schools across Europe.<br />

10<br />

More about Drive2 the Future ....<br />

Drive2the<br />

Future<br />

To take part in survey, click here<br />

Drive2 the<br />

Future<br />

Survey<br />

• Rod Came on autonomous cars:<br />

see p18<br />

Drivers’ smartphones may provide<br />

information about road conditions<br />

Research work being undertaken at the<br />

University of Birmingham could see drivers’<br />

smartphones providing traffic engineers<br />

with information on the condition of roads.<br />

‘Road roughness’ is used to measure<br />

not only road condition but ride quality,<br />

and this information can be gathered by<br />

smartphones, to be passed on to<br />

engineers to assess the need for repairs,<br />

general maintenance or resurfacing.<br />

Smartphones have high resolution<br />

three-axis accelerometers and GPS<br />

tracking built into them, as part of fitness<br />

apps, and the data they collect offers an<br />

up-to-date picture of traffic flow and<br />

congestion. Using this data through a<br />

low-cost app will also record the<br />

movement of the vehicle in relation to the<br />

carriageway. This ‘crowdsourced’ data<br />

allows engineers to assess and schedule<br />

HTML version of National Standards<br />

available from Gov.uk<br />

The Gov.uk website has produced a HTML version of the latest<br />

National Standard for driver and rider training brochure.<br />

The document outlines what you must be able to do and<br />

what you must know and understand to provide training to<br />

drivers and riders.<br />

The HTML version offers more connectivity and ease of<br />

access.<br />

It can be found on the UK Gov.uk<br />

website – here...<br />

National<br />

Standards<br />

carriageway repairs.<br />

The most accurate method of assessing<br />

road roughness currently is to use vehicles<br />

fitted with lasers. However, this is costly<br />

when assessing a large network. Roads<br />

that are maintained to a good standard<br />

encourage economic development and<br />

minimise road use costs such as travel<br />

time, fuel efficiency, repairs and accidents.<br />

It also provides social benefit and reduces<br />

the environmental impact of transport.<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


A highly respected road safety academic<br />

has strongly criticised the ongoing<br />

Transport Committee Young Driver Inquiry,<br />

describing it as ‘not an impartial review’.<br />

Dr Neale Kinnear, who is head of<br />

transport safety at TRL, made his<br />

comments in a keynote presentation,<br />

published on November 2 as part of the<br />

Festival of Road Safety.<br />

In his presentation, he describes the<br />

Transport Committee inquiry as ‘not an<br />

impartial review’, in which ‘anecdote,<br />

personal preference and poorly gathered<br />

opinion are given equal weight to<br />

overwhelming scientific evidence’. He also<br />

says the inquiry ‘mistakenly trades off<br />

safety with freedom’.<br />

Dr Kinnear is particularly critical of the<br />

Government’s decision not to progress<br />

with the introduction of a graduated driver<br />

licensing (GDL) scheme – as announced<br />

to the Transport Committee by the roads<br />

minister Baroness Vere of Norbiton on<br />

October 22.<br />

He states that GDL was supported by<br />

the majority of people and organisations<br />

who submitted a written response to the<br />

inquiry, and goes on to describe GDL as<br />

‘the only evidenced approach to<br />

significantly improve young driver safety’.<br />

Dr Kinnear is also very critical of an<br />

online survey of young drivers carried out<br />

as part of the inquiry, describing some of<br />

the questions as ‘surprising’.<br />

He highlights one question in particular<br />

which asks young drivers whether GDL<br />

‘would be unfair in any respect’ – likening<br />

it to asking turkeys whether they think<br />

Christmas is unfair in any respect.<br />

For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

Government slammed for ditching GDL: ‘it is<br />

only evidenced approach to improve safety’<br />

Dr Kinnear says implementing GDL is<br />

about providing a supportive framework<br />

for developing safe new drivers. Rather<br />

than being an alternative to other<br />

interventions, he calls on the road safety<br />

community to come together to support<br />

improving education, training, testing and<br />

telematics within a GDL system.<br />

You can watch<br />

Neale Kinnear’s<br />

presentation here<br />

To get the<br />

full story,<br />

click here


News<br />

PACTS report highlight risks caused by LCVs<br />

A major report from the Parliamentary<br />

Advisory Council for Transport Safety<br />

(PACTS) has challenged the orthodoxy of<br />

traditional road casualty analysis by<br />

asking ‘what kills whom’ rather than<br />

stressing the most vulnerable road user<br />

groups.<br />

The result is a surprising statistic that,<br />

contrary to popular opinion, cars do not<br />

pose the greatest danger to other road<br />

users: light vans do, followed by HGVs.<br />

While more car occupants die, a<br />

comparison based on number of vehicles<br />

and miles travelled highlights the<br />

propensity of LCVs to be involved in road<br />

traffic fatalities and suggests that more<br />

work needs to be done to improve safety<br />

of these vehicles. That this conclusion<br />

comes at a time of huge growth in LCV<br />

traffic to accommodate the rise in<br />

demand for home deliveries, makes it all<br />

the more pressing that action is taken.<br />

It is particularly interesting when you<br />

consider that the vast majority of the new<br />

breed of drivers getting behind the wheel<br />

of an LCV are armed only with a car<br />

licence and driving experience; perhaps<br />

the time has come for a fresh look at the<br />

licensing rules around smaller vans which<br />

are popular with home courier firms.<br />

This sort of analysis, which places an<br />

emphasis on danger rather than<br />

vulnerability, puts PACTS’ findings more<br />

in keeping with ‘Vision Zero’ and road<br />

danger reduction strategies, such as those<br />

being followed by Transport for London.<br />

The report calls for a new transport<br />

agenda to be created that puts safety at<br />

its heart, rather than considering cost,<br />

congestion reduction or convenience. It<br />

also says that while the Government<br />

wishes to promote healthy, sustainable<br />

active travel, such as walking and cycling,<br />

such initiatives will struggle unless the<br />

public feels safe doing so.<br />

As the Minister for Road Safety<br />

commented last year, while road traffic<br />

casualty statistics highlight how much<br />

work has been done to improve road<br />

safety, it does not necessarily always feel<br />

safe out on the road.<br />

The graphs below offer a snapshot of<br />

the overall analysis and make<br />

enlightening<br />

reading; to read<br />

the full report,<br />

click the panel.<br />

To get the<br />

full story,<br />

click here<br />

‘‘<br />

By analysing the dangers created<br />

by other road users, we get closer<br />

to the philosophy behind the<br />

‘Vision Zero’ strategy, which aims<br />

to eliminate all road deaths<br />

‘‘<br />

12<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


Road safety<br />

Surprising fall in tailgate crashes<br />

revealed in latest DfT statistics<br />

Has the message finally got through to<br />

the motoring public about the dangers of<br />

tailgating?<br />

That’s the intriguing prospect that has<br />

been suggested by new research into<br />

road collisions statistics.<br />

According to analysis by TrackDays.co.<br />

uk, the number of reported road crashes<br />

in which following too close to another<br />

vehicle was a contributory factor has<br />

almost halved in just five years.<br />

According to the Department for<br />

Transport, collisions when following too<br />

close was a contributory factor stood at<br />

7,023 in 2015 but were down to just<br />

3,582 in 2019, the latest year for which<br />

full figures are available.<br />

It is one of the largest percentage<br />

drops of all the contributory causes of<br />

crashes caused by an injudicious action,<br />

which means due to a lack of judgement.<br />

Dan Jones, operations manager at<br />

TrackDays.co.uk, said it was “very<br />

welcome to see such a dramatic drop in<br />

the number of reported crashes when<br />

following too close was a factor.<br />

The reasons were not immediately<br />

clear, he added, “and could be due to a<br />

number of factors. Perhaps most<br />

importantly, advanced safety features on<br />

modern cars, such as adaptive cruise<br />

control which help keep a safe distance<br />

from the car in front, could be playing a<br />

role. But it would also be nice to think<br />

that drivers are now calmer and more<br />

considerate to their fellow road users.”<br />

More welcome news highlighted in the<br />

survey details how the number of<br />

reported accidents when travelling too<br />

fast for the conditions was a contributory<br />

factor was also on a long-term decline.<br />

These crashes fell from 7,361 in 2015<br />

to 4,666 in 2019, a decrease of 36 per<br />

cent.<br />

Additionally, there are also fewer<br />

reported accidents when disobeying<br />

automatic traffic signals, and disobeying<br />

‘Give Way’ or ‘Stop’ signs and markings<br />

was a contributory factor.<br />

Dan added: “Brits do appear to be<br />

becoming safer motorists in certain areas<br />

of driving, which has to be good news for<br />

all road users.”<br />

Decline in ‘following too close’ crashes<br />

Year Collisions<br />

2019 3,584<br />

2018 3,745<br />

2017 4,256<br />

2016 6,040<br />

2015 7,023<br />

High mileage motorists ‘okay with m-way speeding’<br />

A Safety Culture Survey conducted by<br />

IAM RoadSmart has found that 82 per<br />

cent of the British driving public are in<br />

favour of using speed cameras to<br />

automatically fine drivers travelling more<br />

than ten miles per hour over the limit<br />

near schools.<br />

However, the survey of 2,000 motorists<br />

highlighted that attitudes towards<br />

speeding on motorways were significantly<br />

different, with only 63 per cent of drivers<br />

supporting the use of cameras to detect<br />

those driving ten miles per hour above the<br />

limit on motorways.<br />

Worryingly, it also identified that just<br />

under half of all motorists (46 per cent)<br />

think it is acceptable to drive at 80 miles<br />

per hour on the motorway, while as many<br />

as one in four believe it is acceptable to<br />

do so at speeds greater than 80mph.<br />

And while acceptance of motorway<br />

speeding remained broadly consistent<br />

among drivers aged 17 to 69, there was<br />

a noticeable increase among those who<br />

travel longer distances. A staggering 56<br />

per cent of those who cover more than<br />

10,000 miles on the road each year<br />

believed it is acceptable to reach speeds<br />

of 80mph or more on the motorway.<br />

Neil Greig, Policy and Research Director<br />

at IAM RoadSmart, said: “It is reassuring<br />

to see that the majority of motorists we<br />

surveyed are in favour of using speed<br />

cameras to improve road safety outside<br />

schools. However, while speeding in<br />

towns appears to be universally disliked,<br />

it is clear that we still have a long way to<br />

go before the same message gets through<br />

on motorways.<br />

“Speeding causes more<br />

than 4,000 casualties<br />

each year – that’s an<br />

average of 11 people<br />

a day killed or<br />

seriously injured.<br />

So it is extremely<br />

disappointing to see<br />

such acceptance of<br />

speeding on motorways,<br />

and we need to do more to<br />

create a shift in attitude and behaviour.”<br />

14<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


www.msagb.com 15


Road safety<br />

Survey discovers new drivers most<br />

nervous on single-track roads<br />

Single-track roads cause drivers the most<br />

anxiety, a new poll by AA The Driving<br />

School has found.<br />

One in ten (11 per cent) say they feel<br />

scared on this kind of road, with drivers<br />

aged 25-to-34 most likely to report<br />

worry (13 per cent).<br />

The second scariest type of road was<br />

urban/city centre roads with 6 per cent of<br />

drivers feeling scared on them; followed<br />

by rural roads (4 per cent), motorways (4<br />

per cent), dual carriageways (1 per cent)<br />

and single carriageways (1 per cent).<br />

Drivers’ fear of rural roads and urban<br />

roads decreased significantly among<br />

older drivers, indicating experience plays<br />

an important role in confidence. On rural<br />

roads 8 per cent of 18-24-year-olds said<br />

they were scared but this dropped to just<br />

3 per cent among drivers over 65. On<br />

urban roads 8 per cent of young drivers<br />

said they felt scared compared to 3 per<br />

cent of older drivers.<br />

The AA has recently given evidence to<br />

the Transport Select Committee’s inquiry<br />

into young and novice drivers. A key part<br />

of its evidence is to support changes to<br />

the learning to drive process that would<br />

place greater emphasis on making sure<br />

learner drivers gained greater experience<br />

before passing their test. The AA would<br />

support this being done through a<br />

mandatory logbook rather than through<br />

excessive post-test measures such as<br />

curfews and passenger restrictions.<br />

Sarah Rees, managing director of<br />

the AA Driving School, said: “These<br />

results show feeling nervous is a familiar<br />

feeling for many drivers.<br />

“It’s not surprising that age reduces<br />

fear as experience is a vital tool for any<br />

driver. Increasing new drivers’ range of<br />

experience is why we would support the<br />

introduction of a mandatory logbook for<br />

learner drivers.<br />

“Of course, this won’t help those who<br />

already have their licence and are<br />

struggling with their confidence, but<br />

refresher lessons can be a real boost for<br />

those drivers.<br />

“It’s interesting how experience only<br />

reduces fear on certain types of roads,<br />

perhaps indicating some drivers’<br />

apprehension about motorways becomes<br />

so ingrained they struggle with it for their<br />

whole driving life.”<br />

Public still not getting to grips with smart motorways<br />

A new survey by road safety charity<br />

Brake has highlighted growing public<br />

awareness over smart motorways – but<br />

a worryingly high number of users still<br />

don’t know the rules governing them.<br />

The survey, conducted in conjunction<br />

with recovery firm Green Flag, found<br />

that three-quarters know what a smart<br />

motorway is – but only two-thirds of<br />

those are sure of the rules for driving on<br />

them. That’s less than 50 per cent of<br />

the driving community as a whole.<br />

Men are more likely to know about<br />

smart motorways, with just 18 per cent<br />

saying they did not know what a smart<br />

motorway was, compared with 32 per<br />

cent of women.<br />

Fewer than half of drivers have<br />

actually been on a smart motorway –<br />

the majority of whom were in England.<br />

Just 26 per cent of drivers in Wales have<br />

been on a smart motorway, compared<br />

with 20 per cent in Northern Ireland and<br />

17 per cent in Scotland. In England, the<br />

figure was 47 per cent.<br />

The survey also looked at other<br />

aspects of motorway driving.<br />

Encouragingly, 78 per cent of drivers say<br />

they leave a two-second gap between<br />

them and the car in front. However, two<br />

per cent of drivers admit that they leave<br />

less than a second. This attitude was<br />

most prevalent among Londoners. No<br />

one in Wales was so cavalier with their<br />

distancing, the survey found.<br />

There was a mixed response to the<br />

question of stopping distances. Only a<br />

quarter knew that cars travelling at<br />

70mph needed around 96m to stop<br />

safely; a third of drivers thought the<br />

required distance was 73m – around 18<br />

car lengths, which is six car lengths<br />

shorter than the actual figure.<br />

The age group most likely to know this<br />

was the 18-24 year-olds, but as they<br />

have only recently passed their theory<br />

tests, it was interesting that only 35 per<br />

cent knew the correct answer; that’s<br />

only marginally better than the 65+.<br />

The worst age group for knowing the<br />

correct distance was the 25-44-yearolds,<br />

where only 14 per cent knew the<br />

correct distance.<br />

A major concern is that across all age<br />

groups, 14 per cent think you can stop a<br />

car travelling at 70mph in just 36m.<br />

Other interesting snippets to arise from<br />

the report include that one in 10 (11%)<br />

believe the vehicle joining the motorway<br />

had priority, and while most respondents<br />

are aware that they should use the<br />

left-hand lane if the road ahead is clear<br />

(81 per get), four per cent only ever<br />

drive in the right-hand lane.<br />

Read the<br />

report<br />

in full<br />

16<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


Blue Light Aware is back - and the new<br />

campaign is better than ever<br />

GEM, creators of the Blue Light Aware<br />

campaign, has released a new and updated<br />

version of the popular training aid for learners<br />

and other road users. It has also released 10<br />

short video clips focusing on specific road<br />

situations that drivers may encounter during<br />

their driving career.<br />

Blue Light Aware films have proved very<br />

popular, with total views at well over one<br />

million to date. They provide vital<br />

information for all drivers and are especially<br />

relevant to learner/young drivers.<br />

It’s firmly believed that the Blue Light<br />

Aware videos are a valuable resource that<br />

you will find useful added to your training<br />

programmes and they are perfect for sharing<br />

with followers on social media.<br />

From <strong>December</strong> 1 - <strong>December</strong> 14 the<br />

second Blue Light Aware campaign will be<br />

promoting messages to learner/new drivers<br />

and increasing awareness of the videos to this<br />

vitally important section of the driving<br />

community.<br />

The awareness campaign will be based<br />

mainly within social media using the hashtag<br />

#BlueLightAware.<br />

Watch the Blue Light<br />

Aware videos at<br />

For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

The latest videos combine real-life footage<br />

with stylised graphics (below)<br />

VR test of hazard perception test needs some ADI input<br />

The RAC Foundation, in co-operation with<br />

the Road Safety Trust, DVSA and<br />

Nottingham Trent University, is designing<br />

and testing a VR version of the Hazard<br />

Perception Test. This version of VR<br />

Hazard perception test is now available to<br />

download free at the Oculus Store.<br />

MSA GB has been asked to promote<br />

the VR Hazard Perception Test to you and<br />

your learners, to help evaluate it and<br />

receive feedback. Please have a look and<br />

try to encourage your learners to as well;<br />

between us we could be helping shape<br />

the future of the Hazard Perception Test!<br />

The designers say the VR version offers<br />

a more immersive experience than the<br />

standard HPT, including asking<br />

candidates to check their blind spot,<br />

mirrors and side roads for hazards.<br />

At a recent appearance before the<br />

Select Committee on Transport, outgoing<br />

DVSA chief executive Gareth Llewellyn<br />

said that the agency was interested in<br />

applying VR technology to the theory test<br />

as it offered new possibilities to gauge<br />

candidates’ awareness of real-life road<br />

scenarios.<br />

See the<br />

videos<br />

here<br />

www.msagb.com 17


News<br />

Johnson’s green agenda will melt<br />

appeal of ICE cars in a decade<br />

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s ambitious<br />

plans to ban the sale of all petrol and<br />

diesel-engined cars by 2030 has been<br />

greeted by the motoring world with a<br />

mixture of cautious support, practical<br />

concerns and genuine anger.<br />

In a surprise announcement on<br />

November 17, Johnson – a long-time<br />

advocate of environmental reforms – said<br />

sales of internal combustion engine (ICE)<br />

powered cars would end in fewer than<br />

10 years, creating a narrow window<br />

during which car manufacturers and the<br />

electric car charging network could<br />

adjust their plans.<br />

The proposal puts the UK second<br />

behind only Norway in terms of<br />

electrifying its car parc; the Scandinavian<br />

country has previously announced that it<br />

would ban petrol and diesel car sales by<br />

2025.<br />

The UK Government has set deadlines<br />

for sales of ICE cars before: Theresa<br />

May’s Government originally proposed<br />

ending sales by 2040, and this date was<br />

reduced to 2035 shortly afterwards.<br />

But bringing an end to sales this<br />

decade was described by the AA as<br />

“incredibly ambitious”, and industry<br />

commentators were queuing up to<br />

question the wisdom of making such a<br />

bold move.<br />

Motoring lobby groups were also<br />

concerned that the environmental plans<br />

came as news leaked out that Chancellor<br />

Rishi Sunak was considering plans to<br />

introduce road charging in the UK as he<br />

faced a gaping hole in the country’s<br />

finances usually filled by fuel duty and<br />

motoring taxes.<br />

A Government spokesman admitted<br />

that “if the UK switches to electric<br />

vehicles, the total lost to the Treasury<br />

comes in at around £40billion a year, in<br />

terms of lost VAT, fuel duty and VED. The<br />

Chancellor has to claw that cash back<br />

somehow.”<br />

Road charging has been proposed<br />

before: the Labour Government looked at<br />

introducing it in 2007 before dropping<br />

the idea amid strong public opposition.<br />

Under the Government’s latest plans to<br />

reduce the UK’s carbon emissions and<br />

comply with its treaty obligations under<br />

the Paris Accord of 2015, the focus will<br />

be on all cars to be switch to electric<br />

power as quickly as possible – though it<br />

denied that existing ICE vehicles could<br />

be banned from the road in the 2030s;<br />

there is, a spokesman for the Prime<br />

Minister said, “no plans to curb car use,<br />

nor second-hand sales of older vehicles.”<br />

However, stopping sales of new ICE<br />

vehicles in under 10 years will be a very<br />

hard act to pull off, Professor Peter Wells,<br />

director of the Centre for Automotive<br />

Industry Research at Cardiff University,<br />

said. “I’m not sure the UK industry will<br />

be ready to deliver enough electric<br />

vehicles by that point.<br />

“The chief bottleneck so far is on<br />

battery supply. That is being solved<br />

across Europe but we’re a bit behind the<br />

pace here in the UK.<br />

“There’s also a concern on the retail<br />

side, too. Repairing and maintaining<br />

these cars requires new skills and I’m not<br />

sure there will be enough people trained<br />

up.<br />

“It’s a nice vision but I think there has<br />

to be concern about whether it can be<br />

realisable by the industry.”<br />

RAC Foundation director Steve<br />

Gooding said setting a date is “the easy<br />

part; what happens in the lead up to this<br />

cliff edge? How do we create a genuinely<br />

affordable mass market in electric cars<br />

between now and 2030?”<br />

Currently, fewer than one per cent of<br />

the UK’s 33 million cars are plug-in<br />

all-electric vehicles – though that figure<br />

will increase slowly, as pure batteryelectric<br />

new cars took a 5.5 per cent<br />

share of the new car market in the first<br />

ten months of the year. In addition, a<br />

number of car manufacturers have<br />

announced plans to completely electrify<br />

their vehicle ranges by the middle of this<br />

decade.”It’s likely that electric car sales<br />

will take between 10-15 per cent per<br />

annum within the next two years,”<br />

commented a spokesman for the SMMT.<br />

But even if the public does decide to<br />

buy electric, there is growing concern<br />

that the UK’s charging network isn’t big<br />

enough to supply the increased demand.<br />

Jim Holder, editorial director of What<br />

Car?, suggested that, among a number of<br />

concerns, access to public charging<br />

points appeared to be an obstacle that<br />

needed clearing. Capacity “needs to be<br />

increased by 10 or even 20 times” to<br />

cope with the increased demand, he<br />

said. To achieve this, he thought the<br />

Government would need to do more than<br />

offer £1.3billion for increasing the<br />

number of charge points. “We will need<br />

grants for homeowners, businesses and<br />

local authorities to install chargepoints.”<br />

However, the opening of Britain’s first<br />

forecourt only for electric vehicles could<br />

be an example of the future. The station,<br />

in Braintree, Essex, is the first of a<br />

18<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

£1billion nationwide network of 100<br />

electric forecourts planned over the next<br />

five years (more on page 20).<br />

According to Department for Transport<br />

figures, there were 19,487 public<br />

charging devices available as of<br />

September 30 this year, up seven per<br />

cent on the figure from three months<br />

earlier. More than 1,200 charging<br />

devices for public use were installed in<br />

the UK between July and September.<br />

However, motorists who cannot park<br />

on a drive at home will be concerned<br />

over how they can recharge – though<br />

new products are coming on stream that<br />

suggest alternative charging points could<br />

become more readily available in a few<br />

years (for news on one of these, see<br />

page 36).<br />

Businesses are also being encouraged<br />

to install more charging points in office<br />

car parks, and councils to do the same in<br />

its public car parks, which can also be<br />

used while people are at work or out<br />

shopping. However, those who do not<br />

have access to charging points at home,<br />

or at work, face paying more to charge.<br />

The reaction to the plans from<br />

elsewhere within the atuto world was<br />

decidedly mixed. The Alliance of British<br />

Drivers condemned the plan as flying in<br />

the face of the free market, saying the<br />

charging infrastructure was not close to<br />

being ready.<br />

Nigel Humphries of the ABD<br />

questioned whether enough electric<br />

vehicles will be in production to meet<br />

demand by 2030, suggesting the costs<br />

will be so high that only the ‘wealthy’<br />

will be able to drive. The Government<br />

was, he said, “pursuing the wrong<br />

agenda. If you’ve got to the point that<br />

you need to ban something then that<br />

shows you’ve got no confidence in the<br />

alternative. There’s something Stalinist<br />

about it.”<br />

“Where’s the free market in all of this<br />

that the so-called Conservative Party is<br />

meant to be protecting? It’s also far, far<br />

too early and does not give the motor<br />

industry much time to prepare.”<br />

He added that “the motor industry has<br />

demonstrated that markets are far better<br />

at improving environmental outcomes<br />

than Government mandates: in response<br />

to price signals and customer demand,<br />

the engine technologies of today are far<br />

less polluting and far more efficient than<br />

those of yesteryear.<br />

“Where governments have intervened,<br />

they have often got it wrong; the diesel<br />

scandal being the most notable<br />

example,” Humphries added. “It is hard<br />

to think of a more inefficient and less<br />

liberal approach to reducing carbon<br />

emissions. This is yet another regressive,<br />

anti-motorist policy.”<br />

Nicholas Lyes of the RAC warned that<br />

many motorists would be nervous about<br />

the switch to electric cars, given their<br />

limited driving range, while Honda<br />

Europe’s senior vice-president Ian<br />

Howells said that the ban would “restrict<br />

consumer choice”. “An approach that<br />

relies only on expensive electric cars risks<br />

turning driving into a privilege only<br />

afforded to the wealthy, while pricing<br />

those who most need it out of personal<br />

mobility,” he said.<br />

Mark Littlewood, director of the<br />

‘‘<br />

I’m not sure the UK motor<br />

industry will be able to deliver<br />

enough electric vehicles by<br />

2030 ... it’s a nice vision but<br />

I think there has to be a<br />

concern over whether it is<br />

realisable...<br />

‘‘<br />

Institute of Economic Affairs think-tank,<br />

said the plans “rely on the false<br />

assumption that the state is best placed<br />

to pick winners when it comes to<br />

technology and the future of energy.<br />

“The measures announced largely rely<br />

on heavy-handed prohibitions – such as<br />

the ban on sales of petrol and diesel cars<br />

– rather than price incentives,” he said.<br />

However, David Krajicek, CEO, JATO<br />

Dynamics, pointed out that the<br />

automotive industry has been preparing<br />

to transition into electrics for some time,<br />

and given that “we have seen many<br />

governments in Europe legislate against<br />

diesel cars in recent times, and that<br />

traditional petrol cars emit higher levels<br />

of CO 2<br />

on average, this move by Johnson<br />

should come as little surprise.<br />

“Over the last decade, the focus for all<br />

automotive players has been clear:<br />

actively work to offset the potential<br />

negative economic consequences of<br />

banning vehicles with internal combustion<br />

engines. In fact, the increasing adoption<br />

of alternative fuelled vehicles seen across<br />

Europe is showing manufacturers the<br />

benefits arising from their electrification<br />

strategies.<br />

“This is an ambitious timeline and with<br />

many manufacturers not yet seeing a<br />

a return on their investment, the new<br />

policies will require considerable backing<br />

from the state.”<br />

EVs: Where do<br />

ADIs fit in?<br />

If all new vehicles are electric, what<br />

does that mean for ADIs?<br />

For a start, such bold plans will force<br />

all instructors to ditch the clutch and<br />

gearstick – unless electric vehicles<br />

suddenly stop being automatic-only<br />

transmission, which is unlikely. If you<br />

work for a large francise where new<br />

cars are de rigeur, it is likely you’ll lose<br />

manual fairly quickly, and while a<br />

steady stream of good quality secondhand<br />

non-electrics could be in ready<br />

supply for 10-15 years post ‘E-Day’,<br />

why would pupils willingly sign up to<br />

learn to drive one when they know<br />

they are unlikely to ever put their<br />

gear-changing skills into practice once<br />

they pass their test?<br />

The expense of new electric cars is<br />

also a concern, though it must be<br />

stressed that cost savings are expecting<br />

to bring the price tag of EVs down<br />

sharply in the next five years. Batteries<br />

constitute around 35 per cent of the<br />

cost of a new electric vehicle at<br />

present, but it is anticipated this will<br />

fall to less than 25 per cent by 2025.<br />

That should bring EVs into a price point<br />

similar to their petrol counterparts.<br />

And the good news? Maintenance<br />

and servicing should be cheaper – and<br />

filling up with £6 a gallon petrol to do<br />

35 miles will be a thing of the past.<br />

Think more about £8.50 to charge a<br />

60kWh battery capable to a 200-mile<br />

range; on a 20,000-mile year, that’s a<br />

saving of around £2,500.<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

19


News<br />

A new electric car charging station in<br />

Braintree, Essex. Operated by Gridserve, it<br />

will be followed by two more sites in early<br />

2021 – with plans for over 100<br />

nationwide eventually. The Braintree site<br />

can re-charge 24 cars simultaneously<br />

Tide turns as public cottons<br />

on to electric idea<br />

Research by Auto Trader shows that<br />

public backing for electric vehicles is at<br />

its highest level ever as the Government<br />

announced the end of petrol/diesel<br />

engined sales by 2030 – but it’s still a<br />

‘may be’ or ‘possible’ idea for their next<br />

car, rather than a ‘probable’ purchase.<br />

A survey conducted in August of<br />

1,600 motorist found that:<br />

• 77 per cent of respondents who are<br />

looking to buy a new car are considering<br />

buying an EV<br />

• 91 per cent are concerned about the<br />

impact of cars on the environment – and<br />

half are more concerned than they were<br />

a few years ago<br />

• 53 per cent are considering an EV<br />

because of cost savings associated with<br />

running costs, 48 per cent said it was to<br />

reduce pollution<br />

• 62 per cent of people in urban areas<br />

are considering an EV, compared with 45<br />

per cent of people in rural areas and<br />

villages.<br />

Ian Plummer, director at Auto Trader,<br />

said the results showed the tide was<br />

turning towards electric cars, but it was<br />

slow. “In order to meet the Government’s<br />

timetable, the sale of EVs must overtake<br />

the sale of traditional ICE cars by 2024.<br />

But, on the current sales trajectory this<br />

won’t happen until 2029 at the earliest<br />

– and that’s just overtake, not completely<br />

vanquish.<br />

“It’s clear that electric vehicles need to<br />

be the preferred option to the masses<br />

and not just to those who are<br />

environmentalists, early adopters or the<br />

wealthy that can afford their high price<br />

tags, but that isn’t the case yet.<br />

“Over the last six months, while supply<br />

levels of EVs have increased with the<br />

launch of several new models, consumer<br />

demand hasn’t increased at the same<br />

pace. In a world of so much unrest,<br />

consumers have stuck to what they know<br />

– particularly petrol cars.”<br />

The survey found key concerns were:<br />

• Charging infrastructure<br />

• Range capabilities<br />

• Price gap at 15-20 per cent higher<br />

cost than petrol or diesel equivalents,<br />

• Upfront cost<br />

Ian added: “While the commitment<br />

might be second behind Norway, we are<br />

a considerable distance behind them in<br />

terms of market share and valuable<br />

incentives which make a huge difference<br />

to the overall cost and therefore adoption<br />

‘‘<br />

These clear and ambitious<br />

targets are empty without a<br />

clear, substantial path to help<br />

customers switch to EVs<br />

‘‘<br />

levels. The incredibly ambitious targets<br />

are empty without a clear, substantial<br />

path to help consumers switch to EVs.”<br />

Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive,<br />

said: “We share Government’s ambition<br />

to in decarbonise road transport. Success<br />

will depend on reassuring consumers<br />

that they can afford these new<br />

technologies, that they will deliver their<br />

mobility needs and, critically, that they<br />

can recharge as easily as they refuel.”<br />

The BVRLA was equally welcoming<br />

but warns that setting dates is only the<br />

start of the process. “Many fleet<br />

operators are unable to source<br />

appropriate electric vehicles for their<br />

needs while others have a business<br />

model that struggles to absorb the<br />

additional cost and charging constraints<br />

of running EVs,” said a spokesman.<br />

“2030 is an extremely aggressive<br />

phase-out target, but one that will be<br />

embraced by many drivers and fleet<br />

operators.<br />

“The 2035 extension for plug-in and<br />

full hybrids provides an essential lifeline<br />

for those facing a greater zero-emission<br />

challenge.<br />

“Vehicle rental companies and van<br />

fleet operators will be very relieved to<br />

have this additional breathing space but<br />

will need clarity on exactly what types of<br />

hybrid are in scope.”<br />

EVA England, a consumer association<br />

offering a voice for electric vehicle drivers<br />

in England, welcomed the news, saying<br />

the decision supports the UK’s ambition<br />

to have net zero CO 2<br />

emissions by 2050<br />

to combat climate change, and the<br />

urgent need to improve local air quality.<br />

Gill Nowell, a director at EVA England,<br />

said: “We welcome this news and<br />

judging by the results of our survey of<br />

electric vehicle drivers that we ran in the<br />

summer, and so will the EV community<br />

in England.<br />

“Drivers that go electric in England<br />

typically do so as they are concerned<br />

about air pollution, climate change, or<br />

want to significantly reduce their fuel<br />

costs. Regardless of their motivations<br />

going into their first purchase, the<br />

majority find that they are just great<br />

vehicles to drive.<br />

“While health, climate and affordability<br />

are vitally important parts to this debate,<br />

we also see EVs as the go to car choice<br />

for many, as they become increasingly<br />

more affordable and available.”<br />

20<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


News<br />

Collingwood Insurance Services claims top customer<br />

service award for the second year running<br />

Collingwood Insurance Services has been<br />

named winner of the Customer Service<br />

Champion category in the “all digital”<br />

Insurance Choice Awards 2020. This is<br />

the second year in a row the Newcastlebased<br />

insurer has taken the accolade.<br />

The awards, run by Smart Money<br />

People, are now into their sixth year.<br />

Voting for the prestigious awards began<br />

back in July 2020 and over 50,000<br />

consumers cast their votes. The awards<br />

span 23 categories and include a massive<br />

170 insurance providers.<br />

Jacqueline Dewey, CEO of Smart Money<br />

People, said: “We’re pleased to see the<br />

Insurance Choice Awards has had a<br />

record year for the number of firms<br />

participating and consumers taking the<br />

time to rate and review their insurance<br />

provider. Voting in many of the awards<br />

was extremely close and all our winners<br />

should feel proud of their achievements.”<br />

Contact Centre & Operations Director at<br />

Collingwood Insurance Services, Helen<br />

Shields, said the company was delighted<br />

to win the award for the second time in a<br />

row: “After winning the Customer Service<br />

Champion award in 2019 we knew there<br />

was no time to rest on our laurels. Every<br />

day the team continue their hard work<br />

and dedication to offer our customers the<br />

best possible service.”<br />

Helen continued: “The coronavirus<br />

pandemic has, of course, been a<br />

challenge for everyone this year. But the<br />

team at Collingwood continues to strive to<br />

provide the best possible service for all<br />

our customers.”<br />

If you missed the reveal head over to<br />

the Insurance Choice Awards Twitter<br />

page @InsChoiceAwards.<br />

Check out the Collingwood Insurance<br />

Service Affiliate Programme<br />

Did you know you can earn £20<br />

every time you refer a learner driver<br />

to Collingwood Insurance and they<br />

take out a Learner Driver Insurance<br />

policy?<br />

Find out<br />

more<br />

here<br />

Covid made us love our cars again, says UK public<br />

More than half of UK drivers (57 per<br />

cent) say having access to a car is more<br />

important than it was before the<br />

coronavirus pandemic, with reluctance to<br />

use public transport in the future at its<br />

highest level in 18 years, the RAC’s<br />

annual Report on Motoring has found.<br />

Two-thirds of drivers in three specific<br />

groups – young drivers, those with fewer<br />

than 10 years’ driving experience and<br />

people living in London – are all<br />

significantly more likely to say they need<br />

a car more now than they did before<br />

March.<br />

When it comes to needing to use a car<br />

for work, 64 per cent still expect to drive<br />

to offices in the future. A little over a<br />

third of drivers (36 per cent) said they<br />

expect to work from home more<br />

frequently as a result of the coronavirus.<br />

Despite the rise in home deliveries,<br />

68 per cent say a car is essential for<br />

shopping, up from 54 per cent last year.<br />

Meanwhile, 59 per cent say the car is<br />

essential for meeting up with friends and<br />

family who live elsewhere in the country,<br />

up from 45 per cent in 2019.<br />

The research also shows the scale of<br />

the challenge to encourage drivers to<br />

switch from their vehicles to public<br />

transport for some trips even in a<br />

post-pandemic scenario – and if this was<br />

a problem before the lockdown, it’s likely<br />

to be an even greater one in the future.<br />

For the first time since 2002 fewer than<br />

half of drivers (43 per cent) say they<br />

would use their cars less, even if public<br />

transport was improved – down sharply<br />

from 57 per cent in 2019.<br />

Taken at face value, the declining<br />

appeal of public transport seemingly<br />

represents a seismic shift compared to<br />

recent years, and suggests drivers are<br />

more wedded to their cars than they<br />

have been for a long time. It also reflects<br />

ongoing safety concerns of using<br />

crowded public transport systems.<br />

Coronavirus aside, the reasons drivers<br />

give for not opting for the bus, train or<br />

tram for some trips is consistent with<br />

previous years. Nearly half (46 per cent)<br />

say fares are too high (2019: 50 per<br />

cent), 43 per cent say services don’t run<br />

when they need them to (2019: 41 per<br />

cent) and 41 per cent say services aren’t<br />

frequent enough (2019: 41 per cent). A<br />

similar proportion (39 per cent)<br />

complain that bus or rail lines don’t run<br />

close enough to where they live.<br />

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For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

Warning of road death rise as regulators consider<br />

plans to weaken vehicle safety regulations<br />

The European Transport Safety Council<br />

(ETSC) has voiced its concern that vital<br />

new EU vehicle safety standards, set to<br />

come into force from 2022, could be set<br />

for a severe blow.<br />

The European Union agreed last year<br />

that all new cars, vans, lorries and buses<br />

should be fitted as standard with a range<br />

of new vehicle safety technologies,<br />

starting in 2022. The measures are<br />

predicted to prevent 25,000 road<br />

deaths within 15 years.<br />

The most important of these<br />

is Intelligent Speed Assistance<br />

(ISA), an overridable system<br />

that helps drivers keep within<br />

the legal speed limit by<br />

providing feedback on the<br />

accelerator when the limit has<br />

been exceeded.<br />

Inappropriate speed is still one<br />

of the biggest killers on EU roads.<br />

Around a third of fatal collisions involve at<br />

least one party driving at an inappropriate<br />

speed, with cyclists and pedestrians being<br />

particularly susceptible.<br />

But at an expert meeting to discuss<br />

updated draft technical specifications for<br />

the ISA system, the European<br />

Commission presented a range of possible<br />

options for ISA, including a weaker,<br />

untested system that would use only a<br />

series of audio beeps when the speed<br />

limit is reached, rather than direct<br />

feedback on the accelerator.<br />

Officials from France, Germany, Italy<br />

and Sweden said they supported<br />

the changed proposals; all four<br />

countries have significant<br />

automotive industries.<br />

Swedish, together with<br />

German officials, signalled<br />

that they would also like to<br />

see an even weaker speed<br />

limit information function as<br />

an option instead of ISA.<br />

TRL, the UK Transport Research<br />

Laboratory, which carried out analysis for<br />

the European Commission’s original<br />

proposals, has estimated that fitting a<br />

speed limit information function instead of<br />

an ISA system would lead to 1,300 extra<br />

deaths a year in the EU.<br />

Antonio Avenoso, executive director of<br />

ETSC said: “Intelligent Speed Assistance<br />

technology, if implemented in the right<br />

way, could be as important for road safety<br />

as the seatbelt, which, as everybody<br />

knows, was invented in Sweden.<br />

“We would like to see every EU<br />

Member State, but especially road safety<br />

leaders such as Sweden, supporting, not<br />

harming, efforts to raise minimum vehicle<br />

safety standards in Europe.”<br />

ETSC says the best available options for<br />

ISA are either ‘haptic feedback’, which<br />

uses increased resistance on the<br />

accelerator pedal, or a ‘speed control<br />

function’ which limits engine power<br />

automatically when the legal speed limit<br />

has been reached.<br />

These systems are already found on<br />

many cars on the market today, including<br />

models from Ford, Volvo and a number of<br />

others.<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

23


Driving in the future<br />

With Level 3 automation ready to roll in new cars in the near future, who is going to step up to<br />

teach ‘experienced’ drivers how to use the new technology at their disposal, asks Rod Came<br />

The future is autonomous –<br />

but who’s going to tell the<br />

driving public what to do?<br />

Technology is great... but it<br />

can create problems. One<br />

problem that technology has<br />

created relates to<br />

autonomous vehicles. You<br />

will be aware that driverless vehicles are<br />

the dream of manufacturers but fully<br />

automated vehicles are still a long way<br />

off. In the meantime, different elements<br />

of automation are being introduced in a<br />

piecemeal fashion.<br />

Not including the vehicles that require<br />

full driver input as now, there are five<br />

other levels leading to the point where<br />

vehicles can drive themselves with no<br />

need for a driver.<br />

Quite a number of new cars have<br />

self-parking, autonomous braking,<br />

adaptive cruise control and lane guidance<br />

systems. Cars can now travel on roads<br />

maintaining a steady speed and a safe<br />

distance from the vehicle in front. If the<br />

road markings are good enough, the lane<br />

guidance systems will alert the driver to<br />

any deviation. If necessary, cars can<br />

brake to a stop in an emergency and<br />

reverse into a parking space at the end of<br />

a journey.<br />

All pretty basic stuff which represents<br />

levels 1 and 2.<br />

The University of Nottingham, in<br />

conjunction with the RAC Foundation,<br />

has carried out a study of the driving<br />

behaviour of 24 drivers using a simulator<br />

which was set up to automated driving<br />

level 3 – that’s higher than vehicles<br />

currently on the road. This level means<br />

that in certain driving scenarios, all<br />

dynamic, non-strategic driving activities<br />

(vehicle control but not route choice) are<br />

automated, but a human is expected to<br />

intervene when requested to by the<br />

system. The people were divided into<br />

two groups, one of which was asked to<br />

read an information manual about how<br />

to use the system, while the second<br />

group had in-depth practical training.<br />

Not surprisingly, the ‘drivers’ put a lot<br />

of faith in the ability of the ‘vehicle’ to<br />

drive itself while they carried out various<br />

activities unrelated to the progress of the<br />

car. They were, of course, aware that it<br />

was a simulator with no risk of crashing,<br />

so whether they would have been so<br />

carefree in a real car on the road is<br />

another matter. But without doubt, when<br />

this technology is available, perhaps as<br />

early as next year, there will be people<br />

who will test it to its limits by doing<br />

stupid things and leaving the car to its<br />

own devices.<br />

Of more relevance to ADIs is that the<br />

RAC Foundation says that the results of<br />

the research show that there is a need to<br />

update the way learners are taught to<br />

drive, so that they understand what<br />

24<br />

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semi-autonomous cars can and can’t do.<br />

Also, that there is another problem to<br />

consider – how to re-educate 40 million<br />

current drivers into the mysteries of<br />

autonomous driving.<br />

Yes, of course, drivers should be<br />

educated about how to use the<br />

technology available at their finger tips,<br />

but to suggest that ADIs should be the<br />

ones to do it poses significant problems.<br />

Obviously ADIs should do it – after all,<br />

they are the experts in relation to driver<br />

training and related matters. But ...<br />

First, will there be the demand?<br />

Unlikely. For at least the next 10 years<br />

new drivers, in the main, will be driving<br />

vehicles that do not have any of the<br />

advanced technology that is proposed.<br />

Also very few experienced drivers would<br />

lower themselves to seek advice about<br />

how to use the technology available in<br />

their new car. Ask yourself, how many<br />

people have computer lessons?<br />

Second, will the DVSA accept semiautonomous<br />

cars for driving tests?<br />

Probably not until years after it becomes<br />

common place. Look back to the<br />

problems of using cars with hill start<br />

assist and the eventual introduction of<br />

sat navs on test.<br />

Third, for such cars we are looking at<br />

prices north of £25,000. How many<br />

ADIs would purchase/lease a car at that<br />

price when it is only worth about £8,000<br />

after three years and 120,000 miles?<br />

Bearing in mind that the technology<br />

would be nearly out of date by that time,<br />

with the replacement vehicle being even<br />

more expensive.<br />

Fourth, will all vehicles have basically<br />

the same systems? We know that car<br />

manufacturers like to exhibit a degree of<br />

individuality with their products, so it is<br />

likely that although their different<br />

systems provide the same functions, how<br />

they go about it could vary considerably.<br />

As with all conundrums there is an<br />

answer. It is necessary to go a back a bit<br />

in time because what goes round, comes<br />

round. 45 years ago in the town where I<br />

lived there was a franchised car<br />

dealership selling various makes and<br />

models to their customers. That was in<br />

the days when customer service<br />

mattered; not only was it important to<br />

establish a good name for the business,<br />

it was also financially beneficial to the<br />

company.<br />

One of the services they provided was<br />

driving lessons for their customers. Not<br />

all people have the confidence to jump in<br />

their new car and drive away into the<br />

sunset. A considerable number would<br />

very much like some coaching because<br />

their new car is so very different to the<br />

last one they bought ten years ago. And<br />

that situation is only going to get more<br />

likely with the advances in driver<br />

assisting electronics.<br />

Car dealers do have a duty of care<br />

towards their customers and should<br />

explain the function of the various<br />

controls, switches and the ubiquitous<br />

touchscreen display which is installed in<br />

almost every new car. In my experience<br />

they rarely do this, apparently assuming<br />

that because you drove into their<br />

premises, you can drive out again in a<br />

new car. Sales personnel appear not to<br />

have the time to perform this function; it<br />

is therefore a job for someone else.<br />

Perhaps that ‘someone else’ can be a<br />

local ADI with the time and ability to<br />

familiarise themselves with the various<br />

idiosyncrasies of the models the dealer<br />

sells?<br />

There should be a demand for this<br />

service but sadly, there isn’t.<br />

As for re-educating 40 million drivers,<br />

that is not going to happen. The facilities<br />

are not there, the demand is not there<br />

and the number of ADIs required is not<br />

there. As usual, people will muddle<br />

through the best they can, and as with<br />

their computer they will not use most of<br />

the functions. At some point cars will<br />

become fully autonomous and a driver<br />

no longer required.<br />

Problem solved, but at what cost?<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

25


European driving<br />

Covid has shone a light on<br />

Europe’s testing problem<br />

Enrique Lorca, EFA<br />

President, discusses the<br />

difficulties experienced<br />

by driving instructors<br />

in Spain during the<br />

pandemic, a crisis in<br />

L-test availability, and<br />

looks at how technology is<br />

changing mobility.<br />

1) The lockdown measures introduced<br />

to avoid the spread of Covid-19 have<br />

generated economic problems across<br />

Europe. In some countries driving<br />

schools have now re-opened, in others,<br />

they have re-opened and then closed<br />

again, as in the UK. This challenge is<br />

heightened by a shortage of test slots<br />

availability. How is it going in Spain?<br />

How are you managing the training of<br />

your students?<br />

The situation in Spain is very delicate<br />

and worrying. Covid-19 has accentuated<br />

the problem of the lack of examiners,<br />

which was an issue that already existed<br />

before Covid-19. During the first wave of<br />

the pandemic driving schools were<br />

closed from March 13th until Phase 2<br />

(May 25th) when we returned to<br />

something like normal life, but activity<br />

was limited because the body that<br />

administers testing, the DGT, was<br />

working at only 50 per cent of its<br />

capacity for a number of reasons: ill<br />

health reasons, family responsibilities,<br />

holidays. All this has generated a chaotic<br />

situation. Around 300,000 students<br />

have passed the theoretical test<br />

and many of them are having<br />

to wait a long time to be<br />

examined for the practical<br />

test.<br />

The post-Covid-lockdown<br />

period has coincided with<br />

summer, when a lot of students<br />

try to obtain a driving licence, so the<br />

exam system has almost collapsed.<br />

Driving schools are facing the current<br />

situation with great diligence and care<br />

for both student and employee safety.<br />

Social distancing measures (1.5 m), use<br />

of a mask, alcoholic gels and limited<br />

capacity have been implemented in<br />

theory classrooms.<br />

In practical classes and exams,<br />

teachers and students must wear masks<br />

inside the car. The car is cleaned and<br />

disinfected before and after each lesson.<br />

Some driving schools use sterile gloves<br />

for their students even though it is not<br />

mandatory.<br />

The practical exams are carried out<br />

with only one candidate, in addition to<br />

the teacher and examiner, inside the car.<br />

2) In Europe, because of the delays<br />

accumulated from the Covid-19<br />

lockdown and many examiners retiring,<br />

the testing situation is becoming<br />

unsustainable. EFA is proposing a<br />

training model for Europe that takes<br />

these needs into account and wants to<br />

enhance the role of driving schools in<br />

Europe. Less waiting times, faster<br />

driving exams and training aimed at<br />

greater driving awareness, not just<br />

passing an exam. Can you tell us<br />

something about it?<br />

Clearly, the exam system needs an<br />

update. Now we know that when a part<br />

of the system fails, the whole exam<br />

process collapses. Driving schools play a<br />

particularly important role for road safety<br />

in Europe. The training model proposed<br />

by EFA is based on the concept that<br />

skills, awareness and knowledge are<br />

needed to obtain a driving licence. We<br />

passionately believe that the topics of<br />

awareness and skills (in theory and in<br />

practice) must be taught by driving<br />

schools. These topics can be certified<br />

with tools that evaluate the presence and<br />

ability of students, without necessarily<br />

passing an exam. We need thinking<br />

drivers, not people with heads full of rules.<br />

We are sure that with face-to-face<br />

lessons, without fear of an examination,<br />

they can learn more. Knowledge<br />

subjects, on the other hand, will surely<br />

have to be evaluated with an exam.<br />

Thanks to the technology available to<br />

everyone, today we can check the<br />

attendance of students without spending<br />

‘‘<br />

The e-scooter is on the streets, for this reason<br />

a standards regulation is needed. It is easy to<br />

lose control of these vehicles. The need for<br />

protection for their users is real: the use of a<br />

helmet should be considered... and insurance<br />

should be mandatory<br />

‘‘<br />

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a lot of money. This system could also<br />

speed up and simplify the work of<br />

examiners, thus speeding up the current<br />

times waiting for exams.<br />

The Portuguese model in this sense is<br />

already bearing positive results.<br />

3) In Europe, around eighty per cent of<br />

drivers obtained their driving license at<br />

least 20 years ago. Do you think that<br />

there should be a form of periodic<br />

updating of drivers, in the form of<br />

lifelong learning?<br />

Many of the current drivers have no<br />

idea how ADAS works in vehicles. The<br />

Highway Code always changes, and a lot<br />

of rules are forgotten. The skills of the<br />

driver suffer over the years, and<br />

technology changes rapidly, therefore we<br />

can see that today’s drivers need<br />

refresher training and to be taught how<br />

to properly use the technology available<br />

(ADAS) in their cars.<br />

They do not know how to programme<br />

cruise control properly; they fear lane<br />

control systems and autonomous<br />

emergency braking. As well as failing to<br />

understand fuel consumption issues with<br />

the new engines, they don’t understand<br />

‘‘<br />

Many drivers have no idea how<br />

ADAS works... they do not<br />

know how to programme cruise<br />

control, they fear lane control and<br />

autonomous braking...<br />

‘‘<br />

hybrid and electric vehicles, or the<br />

intricacies of recharging systems and<br />

how to drive responsibly in a ‘silent’<br />

vehicle”.<br />

We must not forget the awareness of<br />

drivers: many of them over the years<br />

adopt an unsafe driving style. Before they<br />

have a crash or commit a violation,<br />

training should be given to all drivers<br />

after they have obtained a driving<br />

licence. A lifelong learning process is<br />

needed, and it would improve road<br />

safety.<br />

4) E-scooters are literally invading our<br />

cities. We are all in favour of more<br />

sustainable mobility, but perhaps we<br />

need very precise regulations for these<br />

‘vehicles’. Apart from the lanes reserved<br />

for them, do you think that vehicle<br />

registration, compulsory insurance and<br />

adequate training for their drivers is<br />

necessary?<br />

It is true that cities are redesigning<br />

their mobility systems. City managers<br />

everywhere are trying to reduce or<br />

eliminate private traffic from town<br />

centres.<br />

The e-scooter is a vehicle that<br />

circulates on the streets, for this reason a<br />

standards regulation is needed. It is easy<br />

to lose control of these vehicles. The<br />

need for protection for their users is real:<br />

the use of a helmet should be considered<br />

essential. These vehicles interact with<br />

pedestrians, cyclists and other motor<br />

vehicles (buses, cars, vans, etc) so they<br />

can cause damage. We believe that<br />

insurance should be mandatory, if not for<br />

the vehicle, at least for the rider who can<br />

put all other road users at risk.<br />

It is a new mobility, we need to<br />

regulate it and make it safe, healthy and<br />

sustainable; training should be given to<br />

minimise risks.<br />

Currently there are many accidents<br />

with injuries and even fatalities.<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

27


ADI CPD<br />

A little bit of ‘RAR’<br />

That’s Receive, Apply and Reuse<br />

Steve Garrod looks at how to<br />

ensure effective learning by<br />

structuring your teaching<br />

Imagine you are about to teach a new<br />

topic, such as hill starts. It will normally<br />

mean teaching the subject over at least<br />

two lessons plus additional practice over<br />

a good many lessons to ensure your<br />

learner is confident and competent to<br />

deal with moving off uphill. The exercises<br />

will take in, for example, uphill junctions,<br />

in traffic queues or moving off from the<br />

kerbside (left and right).<br />

Some years ago, having hit a patch of<br />

disappointing test results, I decided to<br />

review the way I was teaching and came<br />

across the basic idea of the Receive,<br />

Apply and Reuse (RAR) model during a<br />

teaching seminar (with Geoff Petty).<br />

Although it was mainly aimed at teachers<br />

who work in classrooms, I could see it<br />

fitted well with driving instruction.<br />

In order to learn well, pupils need to<br />

Receive new content, have time to Apply<br />

the new learning by doing some tasks<br />

(this is the on-road part), and then,<br />

Reuse the learning on a number of<br />

occasions, which is spread out over a<br />

number of sessions to consolidate the<br />

new learning in long-term memory. With<br />

driving, the more a pupil reuses a new<br />

skill, the more they are able to take<br />

responsibility for their learning.<br />

Having discovered this, I felt I had<br />

become too complacent, especially as<br />

before the disappointing run I felt I could<br />

pick anyone off the street and take them<br />

for test as I was having a purple patch of<br />

learner and ADI Part 3 passes.<br />

Revisiting previously taught subjects<br />

throughout the duration of driving<br />

lessons allows pupils to encounter the<br />

similar tasks in a range of contexts. If<br />

you analyse the reason for test failures,<br />

you will often notice that serious faults<br />

occur while carrying out tasks that were<br />

covered in the first few lessons; for<br />

example, moving off and pulling up<br />

safely by the road side and emerging at<br />

junctions.<br />

This is why it is important to allow<br />

28<br />

pupils to practise newly learnt skills in a<br />

variety of contexts.<br />

Learning<br />

It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking<br />

that once a learner has carried out<br />

something independently it means that<br />

they have learnt how to do it. Many<br />

instructors I have spoken to say of<br />

unsuccessful pupils, ‘They knew how to<br />

do it but they messed it up on test’.<br />

The truth is, especially with manoeuvres,<br />

that the pupil knew how to do it after<br />

two attempts but not before the first,<br />

which is what is expected on a driving<br />

test. The same can be said for many<br />

topics, such as moving off and stopping<br />

on busy roads or while emerging from an<br />

uphill junction.<br />

Just before the first lockdown I took a<br />

young lad for test who, when asked to<br />

‘pull up on the left in a convenient place’,<br />

decided it was a good idea to stop just<br />

inches away from a food recycling bin<br />

that had been blown into the road on<br />

what was a very windy day. Admittedly, I<br />

hadn’t had a chance to practise that with<br />

him or never felt the need, but now,<br />

whenever I see recycling bins out, I carry<br />

out a few additional stops. What made it<br />

worse was that the examiner taking the<br />

test was someone I had taught to<br />

become an ADI about 20 years ago!<br />

This is why it is important to conduct<br />

frequent assessments (not just mock<br />

‘‘<br />

“Whatever the order, it is hard<br />

to imagine a topic being taught<br />

well without pupils going<br />

though each of these phases.<br />

What I learnt was that good<br />

teaching looks like a threelegged<br />

stool. If one leg is<br />

missing, the stool falls over!<br />

‘‘<br />

RECEIVE<br />

tests) during the course of lessons. It<br />

allows you and your pupil to see what<br />

has been learnt and what still needs<br />

work.<br />

There is no sense in thinking it is<br />

possible to teach new skills in just a<br />

single lesson (even if it is a double<br />

lesson), because learning a new skill<br />

takes time and requires a lot of<br />

repetition, over many lessons.<br />

This is where many ADIs fall down<br />

when planning for a Standards Check, or<br />

PDIs for their Part 3 test of instructional<br />

ability. If you think of the planning of a<br />

lesson that focuses on skills as topics,<br />

rather than subjects, you will be able to<br />

plan for more time to be allowed for<br />

specific skills to be repeated to ensure<br />

that newly developed skills are used<br />

often enough to get well established in<br />

the long-term memory (as opposed to<br />

the short term-memory). For example,<br />

driving to a different test area to practise<br />

dealing with different types of junctions<br />

so that pupils can apply what they have<br />

learnt in unfamiliar areas.<br />

It is worthwhile considering conducting<br />

mock tests in another test area to really<br />

assess your pupil’s ability to read and<br />

deal safely with the different road and<br />

traffic conditions. Driving to what you<br />

can see and not what you know<br />

encourages forward planning.<br />

The receiving phase can start with your<br />

pupil completing a bit of homework in<br />

APPLY<br />

REUSE<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

‘Stop near a roundabout and<br />

watch the other road users’<br />

the form of working on a specific part of<br />

their theory test which will link to the<br />

next lesson, or if they have passed their<br />

theory, a bit of reading between lessons.<br />

The main part of the receiving phase will<br />

come from the instructor even if is it by<br />

use of questions and answers to refresh<br />

the learner’s memory on what they have<br />

read or previously practised.<br />

In reality, pupils go through each of the<br />

three phases (receive, apply and reuse)<br />

many times during a lesson, which<br />

means that it is not realistic to expect<br />

someone to remember everything that<br />

was explained to them at the start of the<br />

lesson. For example, they may receive a<br />

bit of information, have some time to<br />

apply it, then a bit more receive and<br />

more time to apply before being able to<br />

reuse and so on. It is often more<br />

productive to stop near a roundabout to<br />

allow your pupil to watch other traffic<br />

negotiating it than to sit looking at an<br />

iPad film of the same scene in a quiet<br />

road. This way they receive the<br />

information in a more practical way. As<br />

pupils progress, the main part of the<br />

lesson will focus on reusing previously<br />

learned skills with feedback from the<br />

instructor.<br />

Whatever the order, it is hard to<br />

imagine a topic being taught well without<br />

pupils going though each of these<br />

phases. What I learnt was that good<br />

teaching looks like a three-legged stool. If<br />

one leg is missing, the stool falls over!<br />

www.msagb.com


Comment<br />

If schools are thinking<br />

of scrapping exams....<br />

can we scrap L-tests?<br />

One MSA GB member has<br />

come up with an interesting<br />

idea for the future of testing<br />

learner drivers...<br />

“Parents have called for statesanctioned<br />

testing to be scrapped, in<br />

favour of instructor assessment, research<br />

by charity Parentkind has revealed.<br />

“The news will put greater powers and<br />

responsibilities in the hands of<br />

instructors and allow them to have the<br />

final say on the standard their pupils<br />

have reached...”<br />

Sorry, stop dreaming ADIs; there is a bad<br />

typo in the opening paragraph. It read<br />

‘instructors’; it should have said<br />

‘teachers’, of course.<br />

Because we’re not talking about driving<br />

lessons here, rather schools, GCSEs and<br />

a response to the Covid-19 pandemic.<br />

The rest of the opening paragraphs is<br />

correct, however, and is a direct quote. A<br />

poll of 1,500 parents of teenagers by<br />

pressure group and charity Parentkind<br />

found that indeed, more than half<br />

thought it was time to scrap formal<br />

testing and exams for their children, and<br />

replace the GCSEs and A levels with<br />

teacher assessments.<br />

Indeed, they were even pressing for<br />

teachers to be given the final word<br />

without oversight from on high:<br />

unmoderated teacher assessment was<br />

the most popular option among parents<br />

for deciding how GCSE and A-level<br />

grades should be awarded next year; it<br />

was the favoured option of 23 per cent.<br />

The second most popular option,<br />

backed by 18 per cent of parents, was<br />

‘teacher assessment with external<br />

moderation.<br />

And it isn’t just parents that think like this:<br />

the boss of Ofqual, the regulatory body that<br />

oversees exams and qualifications in<br />

England and Wales, thinks the same, saying<br />

that for 2021, assessment of pupils’ abilities<br />

by their teachers should replace traditional<br />

tests and exams, to reduce costs, steamline<br />

the system and ‘bring joy back to the<br />

classroom’.<br />

The comments were based on research<br />

published in the Journal of Child<br />

Psychology and Psychiatry, which found<br />

that teacher assessments accurately<br />

reflected the ability of their pupils’<br />

performance in later exams in English,<br />

maths and science, including A-levels<br />

and university admission.<br />

The authors said the results “raise<br />

questions about the value of the testing<br />

culture that characterises compulsory<br />

education in the UK”.<br />

“The financial, pedagogical and<br />

emotional costs of high-stakes testing are<br />

substantial, especially compared to its<br />

modest benefits,” the lead authors of the<br />

research said. “For these reasons, we<br />

view our results as support for the<br />

standardisation and wider use of teacher<br />

assessments and the reduction of<br />

testing during compulsory education.<br />

“We should trust teachers to<br />

implement the curriculum and to monitor<br />

students’ progress, abilities and<br />

inclinations. This would arguably benefit<br />

the wellbeing of students as well as<br />

teachers, and help to bring joy back to<br />

the classroom,” the paper concludes.<br />

Kaili Rimfield, of the Institute of<br />

Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience<br />

at King’s College London, said the results<br />

were another piece of evidence against<br />

the use of multiple, high pressure exams<br />

and tests. “We are not anti-test but when<br />

we compared these things we found a<br />

very high agreement between teacher<br />

assessments and exam grades, and that<br />

opens up the possibility that exams could<br />

be used less often and teacher<br />

assessment could be used more often,”<br />

Rimfield said.<br />

Wow. The end of exams? Could be.<br />

So let’s look at this from the ADI’s<br />

point of view. What we have here is a<br />

body of evidence from three sources<br />

– academic research, the head of exams<br />

and those who have to sweep up the<br />

30<br />

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mess after exams go wrong (parents)<br />

– who are all happy to ditch exams as<br />

teacher assessment works better.<br />

Now we all know why this research<br />

has been conducted: Covid-19, and its<br />

likely impact on GCSE/A level results in<br />

2021. Few pupils in the state sector are<br />

going to approach these exams with<br />

enthusiasm, knowing they have lost as<br />

much as a third of their tuition time and<br />

will have barely covered the syllabus by<br />

the time June ’21 rolls round. Because of<br />

the extreme situation in which we’re<br />

living, really out-of-the-box thinking is<br />

going on within the education sector as<br />

everyone looks to avoid a repeat of this<br />

summer’s exam farce.<br />

But once this leftfield thinking gets out<br />

of the box, it’s hard to push it back in.<br />

Rather like the switch from being office<br />

based to working from home, the mood<br />

music is that changes that take place<br />

because of the pandemic will survive<br />

long after we’ve said goodbye to<br />

Covid-19 (if we ever do, of course).<br />

So if we are confronting a new dawn of<br />

no exams and a reliance on teacher<br />

assessments, why can’t that philosophy<br />

be extended from the school classroom<br />

to the driving school car, and to ADIs and<br />

pupils? Why couldn’t an ADI sign off a<br />

pupil’s driving licence, as they are<br />

‘‘<br />

A host of industries set their own<br />

standards and issue qualifications<br />

without the Government feeling<br />

it has to get involved...<br />

suggesting a maths teacher will be able<br />

to sign off a GCSE next summer?<br />

Think of the advantages. First, no<br />

waiting lists. ADIs would simply apply<br />

the standards as set out by the DVSA<br />

and record progress accordingly. SEs<br />

could have greater oversight by ‘dropping<br />

in’ on lessons from time to time,<br />

checking that the ability as certified by<br />

the ADI at that moment was correct. In<br />

other words, keeping a close eye on the<br />

ADI’s ability to correctly assess their<br />

pupils’ ability.<br />

Before a ‘check lesson’ the SE could be<br />

presented with the pupil’s progress chart,<br />

and the SE would then assess whether<br />

the ADI was accurate in his or her view<br />

on the pupil’s standard at that point.<br />

By continually checking up on ADIs a<br />

few times a year the DVSA would<br />

generate a database on each ADI and<br />

know those who are able to accurately<br />

assess pupils at different stages of their<br />

leaning to drive journeys. No need for<br />

L-tests; just continually assess, and once<br />

the agreed standard has been reached, a<br />

driving licence is handed out by the ADI.<br />

Not only no more waiting lists, but no<br />

more DTCs, either. Think of the cash that<br />

would save the DVSA! Instead, total trust<br />

is placed in the hands of the ADI. Would<br />

you allow this pupil to drive<br />

unaccompanied on the roads? Yes? In<br />

that case, we believe you. You are the<br />

professional; your judgement is<br />

paramount.<br />

Far fetched? Yes, undoubtedly. Likely<br />

to happen? No, not a chance, sadly.<br />

When you consider that the DVSA wakes<br />

up screaming at the thought of an ADI<br />

being given the authority to say a pupil<br />

had reached a proficient standard at<br />

doing something like turning a car<br />

around in the road and recording it in a<br />

logbook, it’s pretty unlikely that it will<br />

leap from the current system to a<br />

no-holds barred one of ADI assessment.<br />

But if the UK as a whole starts to<br />

tiptoe down a path of greater reliance on<br />

teachers’ views in schools, why can<br />

some of this new thinking not be applied<br />

to learning to drive?<br />

It’s not even as if a system of internal<br />

assessment such as the one outlined<br />

here is not used elsewhere. A host of<br />

industries set their own standards and<br />

then send candidates off clutching official<br />

certificates without the Government<br />

feeling it has to get involved, from<br />

football coaches and swimming<br />

instructors through to industrial expertise<br />

as displayed by gas engineers.<br />

Why couldn’t ADIs join this illustrious<br />

band in some capacity?<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

31


Comment / Regional News<br />

Life advice that’s applicable<br />

to ADIs can come from<br />

anywhere – even US retail,<br />

cookery and lifestyle guru<br />

Martha Stewart<br />

Rod Came<br />

MSA South East<br />

Martha Stewart is an American of some<br />

repute and I have found a quotation that<br />

is linked to her. It is quite possible that<br />

the same thought has crossed many<br />

people’s minds over the years, but she is<br />

the one who has put it into words. ‘If you<br />

learn something new every day, you can<br />

teach something new every day.’<br />

How about that for the<br />

blindingly obvious.<br />

I exclusively taught in a manual<br />

car until the mid-90s, then I<br />

bought an automatic and taught in<br />

both for about the next ten years.<br />

Soon after I supposedly retired<br />

from teaching and concentrated on<br />

minibuses. Having retained my ADI<br />

qualification (a requirement to be a<br />

member of MSA GB and to be able to<br />

benefit from the professional indemnity<br />

and public liability insurance available to<br />

members, which my clients require) I am<br />

still able to teach in a car. With three<br />

grandaughters coming up to 17, I am<br />

back where I started.<br />

Taking the first one out on the road, she<br />

had previously been practising in some<br />

fields we own. Everything has been going<br />

as expected, with steady progress being<br />

maintained until recently, when she now<br />

has displayed a marked reluctance to<br />

change gear on the approach to hazards.<br />

Everything else is OK, mirror checks,<br />

signal (if necessary) similarly with<br />

braking, but gear changing has gone out<br />

the window. Why?<br />

‘‘<br />

If you learn something new every<br />

day, you can teach something<br />

new every day<br />

(Martha Stewart, right).<br />

How about that for the<br />

blindingly obvious!<br />

‘‘<br />

I’m gearing up to learn<br />

something new ... pass it on<br />

Her mum came out on the last lesson<br />

and still this problem persisted. Then the<br />

light dawned.<br />

You, dear reader are probably familiar<br />

with this, but I have been out of the game<br />

for 15 years and things have changed. I<br />

blame technology which has led to progress.<br />

It is a matter of fact that new drivers,<br />

usually before they start lessons and<br />

certainly after, watch people driving them<br />

around like a hawk and tend to take on<br />

board what those drivers are doing. This<br />

is a good thing provided the driver is<br />

behaving properly – and driving a similar<br />

car.<br />

In 20/30 years time almost all cars on<br />

the road will be automatic. Currently,<br />

electric cars are auto and so are many<br />

more regular cars these days. People like<br />

them because they are so much easier to<br />

drive. Stop and go pedals, what more do<br />

you want? Surely only dinosaurs want to<br />

push a clutch pedal down and up and stir<br />

a gear stick around. So last century<br />

technology.<br />

During a break in the lesson Mum<br />

pointed out that she drives an auto, so<br />

does dad and so does nan, and they are<br />

the people who chauffeur her around<br />

each and every day. And she watches<br />

what they do!<br />

Or in this case don’t do, namely they<br />

don’t change gear, so nor does she.<br />

I learned something today and so will<br />

grandaughter on her next lesson.<br />

The problem will be solved using this<br />

extra grain of knowledge – and we will<br />

both be the wiser for it.<br />

32<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

Life must go on – and can do if you keep up<br />

with the Statutory Regulations<br />

Russell Jones<br />

MSA East Midlands<br />

When, in early November, the<br />

Government announced adherence to<br />

Covid-19 Law would become ‘de rigueur’<br />

for 28 days, for me it was a case of ‘Oh<br />

dear...’ but not entirely unexpected.<br />

It was tiresome to have to replan my<br />

activities but, as I volunteered for my day<br />

job, I just had to get to grips with it, no<br />

time to whinge. The phone calls to<br />

learners and their parents to advise them<br />

of the restrictions were quickly completed.<br />

The media was full of reports about<br />

how another lockdown would have<br />

serious implications on the mental health<br />

of millions of people, however I felt that<br />

it would not affect me personally. Big<br />

mistake! Within days, ADIs seemed to be<br />

in the forefront of complaining through<br />

the media, blighting my breakfast and<br />

almost provoking a rage whereby I<br />

wanted to tear my newspaper to shreds.<br />

Such bleating by mature (?)<br />

professionals was embarrassing and<br />

downright pathetic. It was obvious they<br />

had not studied the Regulations, yet<br />

numerous sensible ADIs had read it from<br />

the first printed word to the last, to get a<br />

thorough understanding of the implications.<br />

I felt the miscreants were showing the<br />

ADI profession in a very poor light.<br />

Let’s look at what was published.<br />

Statutory Instrument 1200 was<br />

published on Thursday, November 5.<br />

Careful reading of the 30 pages<br />

document took some time, but it clearly<br />

stated that travel for ‘work’, ‘education<br />

and training’ would be permitted, via -<br />

Exemption 2. What more did anyone<br />

need to know? The Government had also<br />

issued ‘Guidance’ for the whole<br />

population, and for some of us, that was<br />

as clear as it could be. Even the Prime<br />

Minister said, “Go to work if possible’’.<br />

As far as I am aware, ADIs ‘go to work’<br />

to ‘educate and train’ people to operate<br />

mechanically propelled motor cars to a<br />

safe standard. Is that not the case?<br />

That brings me back to my spilt<br />

cornflakes. With the S1 1200 and<br />

Government guidance clear, why were<br />

some ADIs bleating about, ‘not getting<br />

clear guidance from the DVSA?’ Why<br />

would ADIs want to have the DVSA hold<br />

their hands, especially if ADIs are going<br />

about their lawful work? Even NASP<br />

seemed to roll over before the DVSA<br />

while having its tummy tickled, when a<br />

simple email to the agency saying, “We<br />

are perfectly ok, thank you, we, and all<br />

ADIs, already have the national guidance<br />

from HM Government and require no<br />

intervention from The Axis Building. See<br />

you in <strong>December</strong>’’.<br />

The majority of my learners were<br />

co-operative and agreed to suspend<br />

driving lessons, but one of them is an<br />

‘Elite Sportsperson’ who is permitted –<br />

‘‘‘‘<br />

The Statutory Instrument clearly<br />

stated that travel for ‘work,<br />

education and training’ would be<br />

permitted<br />

via Exemption 3 – to continue their<br />

training in their sport, so travel from their<br />

home is ‘essential’. A problem for them<br />

is that in the first week of 2021 they are<br />

due to travel to an education and training<br />

establishment several thousand miles<br />

away, and they will only be able to return<br />

home once a year, at Christmas time, for<br />

the next four years. Their driving test is<br />

booked and with a very small slice of<br />

luck they will pass it. It was my view,<br />

and that of the parents, plus their<br />

professional sports trainer, that it was<br />

‘essential’ for their driver ‘education and<br />

training’ to continue through lockdown.<br />

The suspension of the driving lessons<br />

could have had a very serious impact on<br />

their confidence and mental health.<br />

Subsequently their driving lessons<br />

continued, and I kept a copy of the SI<br />

1200 in my car, should we be<br />

challenged by any official, allowing us to<br />

refer them to the legal exemptions.<br />

It is, fingers crossed, all done in the<br />

hope of having a good day when the<br />

driving test takes place. I confess that I<br />

might be a little nervous myself that day.<br />

Meanwhile, with the relevant Covid-19<br />

PPE and cleaning protocols in place, we<br />

are working towards having an early<br />

Christmas present. ‘Life must go on’, as<br />

someone said a long time ago.<br />

Parking wars<br />

Shopkeepers in a market town not too<br />

far away are waging a war of words<br />

against parking enforcement officials<br />

who, they claim, are being overzealous<br />

with the issuing of penalty charge tickets<br />

for parking offences. On one occasion I<br />

witnessed a slight skirmish between an<br />

errant motorist and an enforcement<br />

official, who was being advised to get a<br />

proper job. I wondered what ‘driver<br />

education’ the motorist had been taught<br />

when they had been learning to drive.<br />

Parking reward<br />

Very recently, the parent of one of my<br />

learners had parked their car in a<br />

supermarket car park in the same town,<br />

and some days later was surprised to<br />

receive a parking charge notice from a<br />

private company responsible for the<br />

management of parking arrangements at<br />

the premises. I was asked for my<br />

thoughts on the matter. Having studied<br />

it, I advised them that the £70 penalty<br />

was excessive for overstaying a mere<br />

seven minutes, and that a visit to the<br />

supermarket customer relations manager<br />

might give them a fruitful result.<br />

And that’s what happened, so another<br />

happy parent, who rewarded me with<br />

two bottles of wine. Gosh, some people<br />

are so kind, especially when you give<br />

them a little knowledge free of charge.<br />

As I often say, there is more to driver<br />

education and training than three-point<br />

turns and simple driving tests.<br />

Next month I’ll bring you news on the<br />

East Midlands Region’s AGM, where<br />

numerous changes happened.<br />

Meanwhile, after enduring a ‘year from<br />

hell’, the Committee wishes everybody a<br />

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and a<br />

prosperous 2021.<br />

QUIZ QUESTION<br />

What happened on July 22nd which<br />

later allowed me to spend £16 in a<br />

fast-food dining establishment? First<br />

correct answer to me before <strong>December</strong><br />

20 will receive a bottle of wine or<br />

voucher for one!<br />

CONTACT<br />

To comment on this article, or provide<br />

updates from your area, contact<br />

Russell at rjadi@hotmail.com<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

33


Regional News<br />

No change to committee but all<br />

change as far as the Covid-19 rules<br />

John Lomas<br />

Editor, MSA North West<br />

The North West region held its AGM and<br />

Zoom meeting on November 16. We<br />

were grateful for the attendance of Peter<br />

Harvey MBE, MSA GB National<br />

Chairman, and Geoff Little, the Deputy<br />

Chairman.<br />

Attending were the regional committee<br />

(with one apology) and numerous<br />

members from the region including a<br />

name from the past which you may<br />

recall, John Lepine MBE.<br />

There were more requests for access<br />

codes received and answered, but<br />

perhaps something cropped up on the<br />

night which prevented others attending.<br />

We were brought up to date, as far as<br />

possible, on the current situation in the<br />

various lockdowns and other regional<br />

status differences, and DVSA’s likely<br />

responses in the coming months.<br />

One thing that did come up is that if<br />

the waiting rooms are opened up as<br />

shelter for instructors while the pupil is<br />

on test, then this could result in fewer<br />

tests because currently, some examiners<br />

are using the waiting rooms as overspill<br />

office space in order to maintain safe<br />

distancing between employees.<br />

Perhaps overcoats/mackintoshes,<br />

gloves and umbrellas would be better<br />

than over-extended waiting lists?<br />

The AGM resulted in no change in<br />

respect of the Officers and Committee<br />

members for the next year.<br />

The pandemic<br />

The briefing on the latest status on the<br />

pandemic got me thinking about my own<br />

personal take on the situation.<br />

Back in February I was thinking that<br />

we were in for at least 18 months of<br />

disruption. I also thought that we would<br />

be looking at 50,000 fatalities by the<br />

end of August (it appears I was about<br />

two months out with that).<br />

The reason for such thinking was<br />

reading about the progression of the<br />

1918-20 Spanish (actually American) flu<br />

epidemic and watching the BBC<br />

documentary about the same event.<br />

I would recommend both these<br />

programmes to you, particularly the<br />

Covid sceptics among us – but with the<br />

usual caveat of a warning to those of a<br />

nervous disposition.<br />

They can both be picked up from the<br />

BBC’s iPlayer service (see buttons below)<br />

The following are quotes from George<br />

Santayana, Confucius and Aldous Huxley,<br />

all of which got me thinking too:<br />

“Those who do not remember the past<br />

are condemned to repeat it.”<br />

“Study the past if you would define<br />

the future.”<br />

“That men do not learn very much<br />

from the lessons of history is the most<br />

important of all the lessons of history.”<br />

Christmas Greetings<br />

The MSA GB North West committee<br />

wish you a Merry Christmas and Happier<br />

New Year.<br />

We know it has been a difficult time<br />

for everybody and while in the last few<br />

days there has been some encouraging<br />

news in respect of vaccinations, there is<br />

still some distance to go yet. But I’m sure<br />

we will get there...<br />

Surviving<br />

the virus<br />

Flu that<br />

killed 50<br />

million<br />

Eye, eye: Cyclops takes Brake’s new safety award<br />

Transport for Greater Manchester and<br />

Manchester City Council have been<br />

named winners of a new award presented<br />

by Brake, in collaboration with Road<br />

Safety GB.<br />

Brake’s inaugural Vision Zero Leaders<br />

Awards recognise achievement in three<br />

categories – Local Roads Innovation,<br />

Community Campaign Achievement, and<br />

Youth Leadership – and says the awards<br />

‘celebrate the hidden champions leading<br />

the way to safe and healthy roads and<br />

zero road deaths and serious injuries’.<br />

Transport for Greater Manchester<br />

(TfGM) and Manchester City Council won<br />

the Local Roads Innovation Award for a<br />

CYCLOPS (cycle optimised protected<br />

signals) junction in Hulme. This category<br />

was presented in partnership with Road<br />

Safety GB who helped judge the entries<br />

and select the winner.<br />

The innovative junction forms part of<br />

Greater Manchester’s Bee Network and<br />

places the cycle route on the outside of<br />

the pedestrian crossings, fully segregating<br />

cyclists and improving safety for all users.<br />

TfGM engineers Richard Butler and<br />

Jonathan Salter, who designed the<br />

junction, said: “Safety is paramount to<br />

every design we develop, so to be<br />

recognised by a road safety charity for the<br />

part the CYCLOPS plays in keeping people<br />

safe while enabling them to travel more<br />

actively, truly is the pinnacle for us.”<br />

The Community Campaign<br />

Achievement Award went to Amanda<br />

Russell who started campaigning for<br />

20mph speed limits in Faversham in<br />

2015. Her 20’s Plenty campaign group<br />

held public community events to explain<br />

the benefits of 20mph and gradually built<br />

support, finally achieving a town-wide<br />

20mph trial scheme, the first in Kent.<br />

Three students from Murray Park<br />

Community School, in Mickleover near<br />

Derby, won the Youth Leadership Award<br />

for their ‘outstanding work’ in raising<br />

road safety awareness in their school and<br />

local community.<br />

Arjun Binning, Archie Couchman and<br />

George Ogan delivered presentations to<br />

fellow students at Murray Park and to<br />

250 students at the local junior school, St<br />

Peters CE.<br />

34<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

Join us, Minister Vere, in<br />

learning something new<br />

Rod Came<br />

MSA South East<br />

Whatever we do, anywhere, at any<br />

time, there is always a driver involved.<br />

An indisputable truth. Think it over, try<br />

and catch me out. If you can’t you will<br />

come to the inescapable conclusion that<br />

drivers are indispensable. Even people<br />

who profess to walk everywhere are<br />

dependent on drivers, not necessarily<br />

directly, but how do they think their<br />

stout walking boots, clothes, food, get<br />

to where they purchase them from?<br />

So let us agree that drivers are the<br />

lifeblood of this country of ours. Roads<br />

Minister Baroness Vere, when<br />

dismissing Graduated Driving Licences<br />

for new drivers, used as part of her<br />

reasoning that the introduction of GDL<br />

would have a potential restrictive<br />

impact on young peoples’ employment<br />

prospects.<br />

As of early November 2020 youth<br />

unemployment stood at 14.6 per cent.<br />

That’s an atrociously high figure, not as<br />

bad as Spain at 31.13 per cent, but still<br />

unacceptably high.<br />

Working on from Baroness Vere’s<br />

reasoning against GDL, as a Roads<br />

Minister who wants to give young<br />

people the best opportunities to gain<br />

employment, she should have a word<br />

with the hierarchy of DVSA, who appear<br />

to be doing the least possible to assist<br />

those same people to obtain a driving<br />

licence, a qualification which is not only<br />

desirable to them as individuals but is<br />

also important to the prosperity of this<br />

country.<br />

In many cases people need a car<br />

driving licence to travel to work. A<br />

category B licence is usually the first<br />

step to working up the driving licence<br />

‘‘<br />

“The Baroness should have<br />

a word with the DVSA, who<br />

appear to be doing the least<br />

possible to assist those same<br />

people to obtain a driving<br />

licence...”<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

‘‘<br />

Baroness Vere with managers<br />

of the Chiltern Cycle Fleet<br />

e-Bike scheme, Mike Shaw<br />

and Andrew Jackson<br />

ladder. The public now rely on many<br />

items they buy, from food to other<br />

necessities, being delivered by van.<br />

Vans are getting heavier and many<br />

require a category C1 licence. Large<br />

trucks deliver commodities to central<br />

warehouses; those drivers need heavy<br />

goods licences, they are the plasma in<br />

the blood that keeps this country alive.<br />

Buses (where available) transport people<br />

to work, appointments and leisure<br />

activities; their drivers too need licences.<br />

The first lockdown meant that DVSA<br />

has failed to deliver something like<br />

800,000 category B driving tests.<br />

Statistically they would have resulted in<br />

about 370,000 passes, thereby<br />

restricting the employment prospects of<br />

many of those people. In addition, we<br />

are reducing the number of drivers.<br />

Some of these will, in the future, now<br />

be delayed in achieving their<br />

qualification to drive larger vans,<br />

coaches, buses and heavy goods<br />

vehicles, all to the detriment of the new,<br />

emerging, independent UK.<br />

So I have message for the Minister:<br />

“Baroness Vere, please push to get the<br />

driver testing system to be more efficient<br />

and fit for the purpose for which it has<br />

responsibility. This country, new drivers<br />

and ADIs, deserve nothing less.”<br />

Dyfed-Powys<br />

leads charge<br />

of dash cam<br />

evidence<br />

Motorists and other road users have<br />

sent 52,174 dash cam recordings of<br />

potential traffic offences to UK police<br />

forces since 2017, with more than a<br />

third resulting in a court summons,<br />

Fixed Penalty Notice, driver awareness<br />

course or warning.<br />

A Freedom of Information request<br />

sent to every UK police force by What<br />

Car? found police forces across the UK<br />

receive more than 35 pieces of<br />

dash-cam footage every day.<br />

Just over 10 per cent of the<br />

incidents captured on film were severe<br />

enough to warrant a court prosecution<br />

and 9.6 per cent resulted in a Fixed<br />

Penalty Notice (FPN). A further 10.5<br />

per cent resulted in the driver being<br />

asked to attend a driver awareness<br />

course.<br />

Thirty-five of the UK’s 42 police<br />

forces have a system in place to<br />

process and fine drivers and<br />

motorcyclists based on dash-cam<br />

evidence from other road users.<br />

The use of dash cams by drivers and<br />

other road users has shot up by<br />

around 850 per cent since 2017.<br />

Dyfed-Powys Police in South Wales<br />

is the most active in using dash cam<br />

footage. It has taken action over 81.3<br />

per cent of the videos it received, with<br />

40.2 per cent of offenders receiving a<br />

warning, 18.6 per cent being<br />

prosecuted in court and 18.4 per cent<br />

asked to attend a driver awareness<br />

course. Just 4.0 per cent were handed<br />

an FPN.<br />

London’s Metropolitan Police received<br />

the largest volume of submissions<br />

– nearly 25,000 videos over four years<br />

– and acted in 45.4 per cent of cases,<br />

issuing court proceedings to 18.9 per<br />

cent of offenders.<br />

35


Regional News<br />

Scotland’s Phase 4 restrictions throw<br />

another spanner in works for ADIs<br />

Karen MacLeod<br />

MSA GB Scotland<br />

I was saddened to hear that the Scottish<br />

Government has put certain areas in<br />

Scotland into its Phase 4 of Covid-19<br />

restrictions. Unfortunately, I am in one of<br />

those areas. I am sure many of you are<br />

in the same boat and we can only pray<br />

that this will lead the figures to decrease<br />

and allow everyone to have a good<br />

Christmas.<br />

I was also saddened to read in<br />

November’s <strong>Newslink</strong> that graduated<br />

driving licences have been ditched. I<br />

personally thought it was a brilliant idea.<br />

That wasn’t the only article in<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong> that caught my eye; I thought<br />

it was an issue packed with some<br />

brilliant articles. One I was interested in<br />

was from Guy Annan from MSA Western,<br />

on the new-style ‘Parallel Crossings’. I<br />

haven’t come across one of those yet but<br />

will be looking out for them.<br />

I’ve often been tempted to ask ‘when is<br />

a crossing not a crossing’ over some I<br />

have come across in the past. My local<br />

secondary school has the crossing you<br />

can see pictured above right. As you can<br />

see it looks like a Zebra crossing, but has<br />

no flashing amber lights, no Give Way<br />

lines and no zigzag lines. I do see drivers<br />

not stopping for the school children. So<br />

is it a pedestrian crossing?<br />

Or what about the one below it? Is that<br />

a pedestrian crossing?<br />

Well, there is a traffic warning sign...<br />

but what about the other ‘street furniture<br />

you’d expect to see?’<br />

CONTACT<br />

To comment on this article, or provide<br />

updates from your area, contact Karen<br />

at karenreiver63@btinternet.com<br />

What’s your view? Are these ‘official’<br />

crossings – despite the absence of the<br />

usual street furniture we expect to see<br />

around pedestrian crossings – or are<br />

they illegal and potentially dangerous?<br />

Plateauing drink-drive figures show need for more action<br />

Road safety groups have called for more<br />

Government action as it was revealed<br />

that drink-drive related deaths have<br />

stopping falling and have plateaued in<br />

recent years. An estimated 8,680<br />

people were killed or injured when at<br />

least one driver was over the drink-drive<br />

limit in 2018, an increase of one per<br />

cent from 8,600 in 2017. That means<br />

on average, more than 23 people a day<br />

were killed or injured as a result of<br />

drinking and driving.<br />

Most worryingly, the total number of<br />

crashes where at least one driver was<br />

over the alcohol limit rose by three per<br />

cent to 5,890 in 2018, an average of<br />

around 16 crashes a day.<br />

IAM RoadSmart is one of a number of<br />

groups suggesting that England and<br />

Wales should reduce the drink-drive<br />

limit to 50mg, to match Scotland, and<br />

make wider use of drink-drive<br />

rehabilitation courses, longer running<br />

high-profile education and enforcement<br />

campaigns. The group also suggests the<br />

police should seize the vehicles of<br />

repeat offenders.<br />

36<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

New procedures, information on Standards<br />

Check grading and a new committee at AGM<br />

MSA Scotland held its annual training<br />

seminar on 8th November by Zoom –<br />

you know why! All the Scottish<br />

Committee were present with the<br />

exception of our secretary, Brian<br />

Thomson, who unfortunately had been<br />

struck down fairly severely with<br />

Covid-19.<br />

I am pleased to say that after being<br />

admitted to hospital, he is now heading<br />

in the right direction, albeit with a<br />

massive mountain to climb. I’m sure all<br />

members will join the committee in<br />

wishing him every success in climbing<br />

that mountain – and we’re really looking<br />

forward to welcoming Brian back to<br />

committee meetings.<br />

Back to the training seminar: We had<br />

around 35 members in attendance for<br />

the virtual meeting, in addition to Mike<br />

Warner, the DVSA’s senior external affairs<br />

manager, and John Sheridan, DVSA<br />

driver training policy manager. Both<br />

delivered excellent presentations. Mike<br />

discussed the new additions to the<br />

Standard Operating Procedures for a<br />

third party in the back of training<br />

vehicles to be using British Sign<br />

Language, and to review the current<br />

ventilation system in learner cars for<br />

examiners. All this information is<br />

available on the NASP<br />

website.<br />

John discussed the current<br />

state of play on the register.<br />

There were 38,690 ADIs on<br />

the DVSA register as of June,<br />

and around a third of these<br />

– 10,300 – had been classified<br />

as Grade A instructors. 24,000 were<br />

classed as Grade B on their Standards<br />

Check, while 1,300 had failed.<br />

Surprisingly, there are still some<br />

Instructors who hold the previous grades<br />

of 4/5 and 6.<br />

We also discussed the ADI Part 2 test<br />

(driving assessment) which only has a<br />

60.6 per cent pass rate as of June 2020<br />

- though that wa slightly higher than<br />

2018/19, when it was 58 per cent.<br />

The ADI Part 3 pass rate was 35.1 per<br />

cent as of June 2020, slightly down from<br />

2018/19’s 37 per cent.<br />

We also discussed the opening up of<br />

waiting rooms, as well as ‘blue light<br />

driver training and also tougher laws for<br />

mobile phone use.<br />

Watch out for more information on<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong> regarding these subjects.<br />

I would like to take this opportunity to<br />

thank Messers Warner and Sheridan for<br />

attending our meeting; it was<br />

greatly appreciated.<br />

As the Zoom seminar also<br />

included the AGM for MSA<br />

GB Scotland, we had some<br />

statutory steps to take. The<br />

current committee all formally<br />

stood down, before being<br />

re-elected into their office again<br />

for the next 12 months.<br />

The Regional Chairman is, therefore,<br />

the same, as for 2019-20:<br />

Chairman: Alex Buist (pictured)<br />

Deputy Chairman: Steven Porter<br />

Vice Chairman: Bob Baker<br />

Secretary: Brian Thomson<br />

Treasurer: Liam Baird<br />

Editor: Karen MacLeod.<br />

Committee members are Peter Harvey<br />

MBE, Judy Hale, Bryan Phillips, Mark<br />

Hewison, Richard Barclay and Ian<br />

Marshall.<br />

Finally, as this is the <strong>December</strong> issue<br />

of <strong>Newslink</strong>, may I wish the MSA<br />

Scotland committee and everyone<br />

reading this issue a very Merry Christmas<br />

and a better New Year in 2021.<br />

Take care everyone and I look forward<br />

to welcoming in the New Year with you<br />

in the January issue of <strong>Newslink</strong>.<br />

Taxman makes expenses easier - but not for ADIs<br />

There’s some good news for those ADIs<br />

dreading filling in their self assessment<br />

form in January – a more simplified way<br />

of calculating vehicle expenses has been<br />

introduced by HMRC.<br />

However, sadly, the scheme explicitly<br />

says it is not for ADIs with dual<br />

controlled cars.<br />

However, if you run cars for other<br />

business purposes, such as driver<br />

assessment courses or driver awareness<br />

training, you can now calculate your<br />

vehicle expenses using a flat rate for<br />

mileage instead of the actual costs of<br />

buying and running your vehicle.<br />

You can use simplified expenses for:<br />

• cars (except cars designed for<br />

commercial use, for example black cabs<br />

or dual control driving instructors’ cars)<br />

• goods vehicles<br />

• motorcycles<br />

The flat rate per mile with simplified<br />

expenses for cars and goods vehicles for<br />

the first 10,000 miles is 45p a mile;<br />

above that mileage it is 25p. For<br />

motorcycles it is 24p per mile.<br />

As an example, if you drive 11,000<br />

business miles over the year you can<br />

claim £4,500 for the first 10,000 miles<br />

and £250 for next 1,000, giving a total<br />

allowance of £4,750.<br />

You do not have to use flat rates for all<br />

your vehicles. Once you use the flat rates<br />

for a vehicle, you must continue to do so<br />

as long as you use that vehicle for your<br />

business.<br />

You can claim all other travel expenses<br />

(for example, train journeys) and parking<br />

on top of your vehicle expenses.<br />

Use the simplified expenses checker to<br />

compare what you can claim using<br />

simplified expenses with what you can<br />

claim by working out the actual costs.<br />

More details, plus links to the<br />

Simplified expenses checker, can be<br />

found at<br />

Simplified<br />

expenses<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

37


Regional News<br />

Theory test certificate holders lose out<br />

again as DVSA rules out extension<br />

Terry Pearce<br />

MSA West Midlands<br />

By the time you read this article, we will<br />

be out of the second lockdown.<br />

This time, because there were no<br />

emergency key worker tests, instructors<br />

were unable to carry on working by using<br />

that as an excuse, so hopefully they were<br />

forced to respect the lockdown this time.<br />

One thing I found to be very unfair is<br />

the fact that the theory test certificate<br />

was again not extended, the reason given<br />

being ‘your road safety knowledge and<br />

hazard perception skills need to be up to<br />

date when you restart driving lessons<br />

and take your driving test’.<br />

So where does this magical two-year<br />

figure come from? If someone passes<br />

their driving test just before the two-year<br />

deadline, it is assumed that their road<br />

safety knowledge will stay the same for<br />

their lifetime, so why would the<br />

knowledge of someone who is learning<br />

after two years and is still getting<br />

experience as a learner be different for<br />

someone who passed the theory test<br />

some time ago?<br />

Several of my pupils who pass when<br />

they are 17 do not drive again until they<br />

leave university and they still have the<br />

required skills.<br />

The quote we all use is that ‘driving is<br />

like learning to ride a bike’, implying that<br />

when you can do it, ‘you never forget’. I<br />

taught a 59-year-old lady who had not<br />

driven since she failed her driving test 30<br />

years previously and without any<br />

instruction she could still drive<br />

reasonably well.<br />

As far as hazard perception goes<br />

people are constantly practising it; it’s<br />

just that we call them ‘backseat drivers’.<br />

When I took my ADI theory test there<br />

were no printed questions, you were just<br />

given a list of books to read which<br />

included the Highway Code. It was about<br />

a year after I passed the theory test that I<br />

started teaching. I had bought myself a<br />

flip book of road signs to test my pupils<br />

because, before the present theory test<br />

started, you were asked questions about<br />

motoring matters and the Highway Code<br />

at the end of their driving test. When I<br />

confidently started to flip the pages to<br />

ask them what the sign was, I suddenly<br />

thought to myself ‘what is that sign’? I<br />

had forgotten!<br />

Now, if I could forget after being a<br />

motorist for 25 years which included<br />

driving fire appliances for the brigade,<br />

what is a reasonable time for a theory<br />

certificate to be valid? Apart from the<br />

theory exam, perhaps learners should<br />

also be asked some additional questions<br />

at the end of the test, then they would be<br />

encouraged to keep their knowledge up<br />

to date.<br />

I suppose that we should be grateful<br />

that the DVSA did not take advice about<br />

the two-year figure from TV programme<br />

documentary makers as they think we<br />

have a memory span of about four<br />

minutes. Halfway through a car chase<br />

you have an advert break and when they<br />

come back, they give you a recap, very<br />

annoying.<br />

Not that I am cynical, but I think that<br />

is purely to avoid making a few more<br />

minutes real programming!<br />

Perhaps two years might be reasonable<br />

in normal cases but not extending the<br />

theory test through the lockdown was<br />

downright inconsiderate and unfair, in<br />

my view.<br />

West Midlands AGM<br />

We recently held our regional AGM<br />

digitally on ‘Zoom’ and I am pleased to<br />

say that the committee members have<br />

remained the same.<br />

As the regional editor can I make my<br />

normal request for items of interest; I am<br />

sure there are many stories waiting to be<br />

told. My contact details are at the end.<br />

Finally...<br />

Hopefully, we will be soon be getting<br />

vaccinated against Covid-19 and looking<br />

forward to a brighter future. I wish you<br />

all a Very Happy Christmas and a Happy<br />

New Year.<br />

CONTACT<br />

To comment on this article, or provide<br />

updates from your area, contact<br />

Terry at terry@terrypearce.co.uk<br />

38<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

New chair for South East after Terry steps down<br />

Fenella Wheeler<br />

MSA South East<br />

2020... it’s certainly been a particularly<br />

weird year for everyone! My deepest<br />

condolences go out to everyone who has<br />

lost loved ones or who is struggling with<br />

Covid-19.<br />

We held our seminar and AGM for the<br />

South East via Zoom on November 23. It<br />

was a first such meeting for many of us.<br />

In attendance were our local Hastings<br />

and Rye MP Sally-Ann Hart, and we<br />

were delighted to be joined by two<br />

members of the DVSA’s ADI Enforcement<br />

team, George Kountouros and Russell<br />

Cloke.<br />

In addition, Graham Hooper from the<br />

Tri-Coaching Partnership gave us a great<br />

talk on why we should coach.<br />

Finally, we welcomed MSA GB’s<br />

National Chairman, Peter Harvey MBE<br />

and Deputy Chairman Geoff Little, who<br />

provided us with a host of industry<br />

updates and ideas to help us all out<br />

during this very stressful and challenging<br />

time.<br />

I found myself hosting the event at the<br />

last minute as Terry Cummins, our<br />

regional chairman, was taken ill a few<br />

days beforehand. I am happy to say that<br />

he has recovered nicely. However, he has<br />

made the decision to slow down a little<br />

and has stood down as Chairman with<br />

immediate effect.<br />

As a result, we now have a new<br />

Committee line-up:<br />

Regional Chairman: Fenella Wheeler<br />

Vice Chairman: Terry Cummins<br />

Deputy Chairman: Bob Page<br />

Treasurer: Maranda Gould<br />

Secretary: Neil Palmer<br />

Editor: Fenella Wheeler<br />

Committee members: Rod Came, Oliur<br />

Rahman, Tina Rixon and Melissa Field.<br />

If anybody would like to join the<br />

committee, please do email me on the<br />

address at the end of this piece.<br />

For a first attempt, it was a successful<br />

meeting and I think everyone enjoyed it.<br />

We are looking forward to the time when<br />

we can meet face-to-face again, but in<br />

the meantime, virtual meetings are the<br />

way to go!<br />

Finally, I wish everyone a safe and<br />

happy Christmas and a prosperous New<br />

Year.<br />

CONTACT<br />

To comment on this article, or provide<br />

updates from your area, you can<br />

contact Fenella at<br />

lookingafterthelearners@gmail.com<br />

Drivers nervous at<br />

night time<br />

MSA GB Christmas social:<br />

East Midlands plays host for a<br />

members’ Zoom get together<br />

Date: Tuesday, <strong>December</strong> 15<br />

Time: From 7.30pm<br />

Free of charge<br />

MSA East Midlands is hosting a festive<br />

Christmas get together for members on<br />

Tuesday, <strong>December</strong> 15, via Zoom.<br />

It’s open to all driving instructors and<br />

trainers in the UK, both MSA members<br />

and non-members welcome.<br />

It will start with a spot of updating as<br />

our guest speaker will be Peter Harvey,<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

MSA GB National Chairman, and he’s<br />

happy to answer any questions you have.<br />

This will be followed by an evening of fun<br />

quizzes with some prizes to win, to be<br />

sent direct to your door.<br />

Dress theme – wear a Christmas jumper<br />

and hat! Bring your favourite tipple and a<br />

mince pie to spread some Christmas<br />

cheer! It’s got to be said, we all need it!<br />

Contact: chair.em@msagb.com for the<br />

link to join.<br />

Nearly a third (29 per cent) of UK<br />

motorists get nervous when driving<br />

in the dark, according to new<br />

research by SEAT UK.<br />

The survey of 2,000 motorists also<br />

revealed that 31 per cent of drivers<br />

actively avoid driving in the dark if<br />

possible. Of those who said driving<br />

in the dark makes them nervous,<br />

over two-thirds (68 per cent) said<br />

this is because they do not like<br />

having lower visibility.<br />

Perhaps surprisingly, 18-24-year<br />

olds (37 per cent) are most likely to<br />

feel nervous about driving in the<br />

dark, while experience counts, as<br />

only 25 per cent of over 55s have<br />

concerns.<br />

London drivers (40 per cent) are<br />

significantly more likely to get<br />

nervous when driving in the dark,<br />

and are more likely to avoid getting<br />

behind the wheel when it is dark<br />

(43 per cent), followed by motorists<br />

from the West Midlands (34 per<br />

cent). However, drivers in the South<br />

East are the most comfortable taking<br />

to wheel when the night has drawn<br />

in, with only 25 per cent saying they<br />

would avoid driving when it is dark.<br />

39


Regional News<br />

Good chance missed<br />

as Government ditches<br />

graduated licence plan<br />

Remind me,<br />

what’s the<br />

speed limit?<br />

A new survey from Venson Automotive<br />

Solutions has highlighted<br />

that the public needs more visible<br />

speed limit signs to stop them from<br />

‘unwittingly’ breaking the limit.<br />

It also found that employed<br />

35-54 year olds, earning an above<br />

average salary, are more likely to<br />

speed than their younger counterparts<br />

– knowingly or otherwise.<br />

Police road crash data shows that<br />

every year over 500 people are<br />

killed (almost one third of all road<br />

deaths), 5,000 seriously injured<br />

and almost 40,000 slightly injured<br />

in collisions involving drivers or<br />

riders who are driving for work.<br />

This includes other road users, as<br />

well as at-work drivers and riders<br />

themselves. In fact, most of those<br />

killed on work-related journeys are<br />

passengers, pedestrians and riders<br />

rather than the at-work drivers and<br />

riders.<br />

Simon Staton, Director of Client<br />

Management at Venson Automotive<br />

Solutions comments, “Our survey<br />

findings suggest that more needs to<br />

be done to make people aware –<br />

both in terms of in-car tech to alert<br />

drivers to their speed and dominant<br />

signage on UK’s roads – of varying<br />

speed limits, particularly in the<br />

wake of new reduced limits across<br />

many towns and cities.<br />

“Driving a vehicle at excess speed<br />

is one of the most common<br />

motoring offences.<br />

“However, with the HSE<br />

estimating that ‘more than a<br />

quarter of all road traffic incidents<br />

may involve somebody who is<br />

driving as part of their work at the<br />

time’, more must be done to curb<br />

speeding.”<br />

Guy Annan<br />

MSA Western<br />

The Government’s decision to drop<br />

graduated driving licences is a mistake<br />

and a chance missed. In my personal<br />

view, it’s typical of the nanny state to<br />

take the easy way out rather than get off<br />

their backside and work for a living.<br />

They spout ‘road safety’ in one breath<br />

and do nothing about it when they get<br />

the chance to make a real difference.<br />

My suggestion would be for everyone<br />

wishing to drive (and those currently<br />

driving) to take a psychiatric evaluation<br />

and if they fail, they don’t drive. Not<br />

exactly a vote winner so I don’t think it’ll<br />

ever happen.<br />

Either that or put more police back on<br />

the streets in cars. The amount of bad<br />

driving is becoming worrying; cars<br />

weaving in and out at speed, running red<br />

lights, lots of queue jumping. There is<br />

just no patience or respect out there<br />

anymore.<br />

In Germany if anybody fails the<br />

practical driving test three times, they<br />

have to undergo a psychiatric evaluation<br />

before they take it a fourth time.<br />

It has been a tough month with the<br />

second national lockdown. It looks like<br />

our Prime Minister and the medical<br />

people don’t know what to do at the<br />

moment, so restricting movement of<br />

people is necessary.<br />

It is now getting really serious: many<br />

of the population think we are just being<br />

messed around because some people<br />

did not keep to the rules. When we get<br />

to talk about curfews, we know we’re in<br />

trouble. It reminds many of our older<br />

citizens of the war years.<br />

The consequences of the restrictions is<br />

clearly making people agitated, as they<br />

are stopped from doing the most normal<br />

things in their lives. The large number of<br />

contradictions from area to area is<br />

confusing, and our leaders are unable to<br />

deliver a clear message.<br />

We are all ‘fit and proper people’ and<br />

we should all take the proper<br />

precautions to minimise the spread of<br />

the virus but should we really make the<br />

call to impose sanctions by law on<br />

driving instructors who, for whatever<br />

reason, fail to wear a mask, as was<br />

being called for the month before last?<br />

I visited my doctor the other day and<br />

asked him how long he thought the<br />

pandemic would last.<br />

He replied what are you asking me for,<br />

I’m not a politician!<br />

Future thoughts<br />

At least now we’re out of lockdown we<br />

can get on with our lives. Let’s hope<br />

we’re as near to back to normal as<br />

possible soon. What will next year bring?<br />

My fear is that the pandemic is not<br />

going away very soon. I believe the<br />

DVSA has been told to form a three-year<br />

plan on how it will cope with on-going<br />

problems! I’m hearing whispers of<br />

Lockdowns 3 and 4 in 2021; let’s hope<br />

not.<br />

No one knows what’s going to happen<br />

so let’s enjoy every day.<br />

Christmas thoughts<br />

As at present you are only allowed to<br />

meet in 6s but allowed 30 at a funeral, I<br />

shall be having a funeral for my pet<br />

turkey on <strong>December</strong> 25th. I hope you<br />

join me in mourning its passing. It was a<br />

faithful chum.<br />

Whatever you do on the day, I wish<br />

you all a very enjoyable and safe<br />

Christmas and in the words of Dave<br />

Allen “may your God go with you”. Merry<br />

Christmas, and see you in 2021.<br />

CONTACT<br />

To comment on this article, or provide<br />

updates, contact Guy at g.annan@<br />

alphadrivingtaunton.com<br />

40<br />

NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

The A38: a traditional dual carriageway<br />

with a ghostly reputation<br />

Guy Annan<br />

Okay, I admit, this has nothing to do with<br />

driver training or road safety... unless you<br />

count the regular use of the emergency<br />

stop, of course. But as I was thinking<br />

about copy around Halloween, a story<br />

came back to me that I thought I’d share.<br />

The road between Taunton and<br />

Wellington – the A38 – is haunted.<br />

Don’t believe me? Well, drive along this<br />

road during the hours of darkness or in<br />

the early hours on a frosty night and it’s<br />

not unusual to encounter a tall, thin<br />

bedraggled figure hitching a lift.<br />

Apparently when he gets in the car he<br />

talks of the awful accidents that have<br />

happened along that road and then<br />

suddenly, when the driver turns his head<br />

to engage in conversation, vanishes, only<br />

to reappear two or three miles further<br />

down the road when he jumps out in front<br />

of the car, causing it to brake or swerve to<br />

avoid an accident. When the driver gets<br />

out of the car to check if the person is<br />

hurt there’s no one there.<br />

The police once found a car stopped on<br />

the side of the road with the driver in a<br />

state of shock as he recounted a story<br />

very similar to the above.<br />

Others have had similar experiences:<br />

they include a lorry driver who thought he<br />

had run a man down and a motorcyclist<br />

who broke his leg as a result of crashing<br />

to avoid a figure who materialised out of<br />

nowhere.<br />

The best known source of the story<br />

comes from 1958 and a lorry driver<br />

called Harold Unsworth. He said that on<br />

three separate occasions at about 3am he<br />

had given a lift to a man he picked up<br />

from the Blackbird Inn on the A38. Each<br />

time the hitchhiker described the<br />

accidents which had taken place along<br />

the road in the past. On the third occasion<br />

of giving the man a lift, Unsworth said<br />

that the mysterious man asked him if he<br />

would wait while he collected some cases<br />

and then drop him off at another point<br />

further down the road. After waiting for<br />

20 minutes Unsworth decided to continue<br />

on his journey alone.<br />

Three miles down the road he saw a<br />

figure in his headlights waving a torch. He<br />

was terrified to see that this figure was in<br />

fact the man in grey, who was shaking a<br />

fist at him. The figure leapt in front of his<br />

lorry, causing Unsworth to stop and get<br />

out, expecting to find that the man had<br />

been struck. However, he found the man<br />

standing in the road again, shaking his<br />

fist and cursing at having been left<br />

behind. To his shock the figure then<br />

turned his back on Harold and vanished<br />

instantly.<br />

Other similar tales have arisen from the<br />

same stretch of road. A woman in white<br />

is said to haunt a stretch of the A38 near<br />

the reservoir at Barrow Gurney. As with<br />

the figure described above, drivers have<br />

reported having to slam the brakes on or<br />

swerve to avoid a figure who suddenly<br />

appears in the middle of the road before<br />

vanishing. The road is littered with skid<br />

marks which show where drivers have<br />

been forced to suddenly brake to avoid<br />

the woman, who is said to be dressed in<br />

a long white coat...<br />

<strong>Newslink</strong> writes... We’re not commenting<br />

on the supernatural, and we’ve certainly<br />

never heard of a haunted test centre...<br />

but the A38 isn’t the UK’s only road with<br />

a ghostly reputation, as we discovered...<br />

Harewood Road, Holymoorside<br />

The three-mile lane linking Beeley Moor<br />

with Holymoorside is reported to be<br />

haunted by phantom monks.<br />

Monks would be sent over from<br />

Beauchief Abbey to Harewood Grange, to<br />

work on the land, as a punishment for<br />

misbehaving.<br />

An uncomfortable atmosphere has also<br />

been reported around the entrance to the<br />

abandoned Hunger Hill Pumping Station.<br />

A11 Thetford Bypass<br />

The A11 dual carriageway Thetford<br />

bypass is reputedly haunted by a<br />

phantom gamekeeper appearing on car<br />

bonnets. While waiting at a traffic light,<br />

one driver witnessed a car from the<br />

1930s pass and vanish.<br />

The A38 near<br />

Barrow Gurney<br />

reservoir:<br />

haunted by a<br />

mysterious<br />

woman in white<br />

A21 Sevenoaks Bypass<br />

The A21 Sevenoaks Bypass is reputedly<br />

haunted by a ghostly sliproad which leads<br />

drivers into oncoming traffic.<br />

A22 Caterham Bypass<br />

On a certain section of the Caterham<br />

bypass, spectral females have been seen<br />

in the carriageway and crossing the road.<br />

A61 Unstone-Dronfield Bypass<br />

Cars heading northbound past Monk<br />

Wood are known to suddenly veer off<br />

down an embankment just a few feet<br />

before the crash barrier starts.<br />

The bypass is also believed to be<br />

haunted as a result of horrific fatal injuries<br />

sustained in accidents.<br />

A616 Stocksbridge Bypass<br />

The A616 north of Sheffield is known<br />

as the Stocksbridge Bypass.<br />

During the bypass’s construction,<br />

security staff reported encounters with<br />

phantom children dancing around an<br />

electricity pylon and a ghostly monk<br />

standing on Pea Royd Bridge; he was<br />

believed to have been from the Hunshelf<br />

Priory.<br />

A75 road, Scotland<br />

The A75 road between – appropriately!<br />

– Annan and Gretna Green has been<br />

called Scotland’s most haunted road.<br />

According to one story, in 1957 a truck<br />

driver swerved to avoid a couple walking<br />

in the road but when he stopped to<br />

investigate, the pair had vanished. Other<br />

versions of the stories tell of a couple or<br />

group of friends walking down the road at<br />

night and drivers constantly plagued and<br />

harrassed by shadowy figures, from an<br />

elderly woman to the back-end of a semi<br />

truck that they nearly hit before braking,<br />

only for it to disappear.<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

41


Meet the ADI<br />

Continuing our series of Q&As with MSA GB members,<br />

this month, from Cornwall, Kris Ford<br />

Kris pictured in her normal<br />

attire for a driving lesson...<br />

Ditch the manoeuvres and<br />

get busy sorting out<br />

the L-test backlog, DVSA<br />

When did you become an ADI, and<br />

what made you enter the profession?<br />

I started training in 2011, and<br />

qualified in 2012. As for why, that’s a<br />

long story! To keep it brief, my mum lives<br />

in Cyprus, and I know that one day I am<br />

going to need to be there for her, so I<br />

needed to think of a trade I could take<br />

with me – and if you saw the standard of<br />

driving on the island, well, I think you<br />

would understand why I followed this<br />

route!<br />

What’s the best bit about the job?<br />

The smiles on clients’ faces when they<br />

have passed their test and their comments<br />

afterwards.<br />

... And the worst?<br />

The weather... hot days are so stifling,<br />

and cold or very wet dreary days. Sucks<br />

the life out of me.<br />

What’s the best piece of training advice<br />

you were ever given?<br />

Always make yourself heard and<br />

clearly understood. Never leave it vague,<br />

unclear or open to query.<br />

What one piece of kit, other than your<br />

car and phone, could you not do<br />

without?<br />

My roof sign. I know that some ADIs<br />

don’t like them but for some reason I’ve<br />

never quite fathomed, magnetic L-plates<br />

don’t like my car! Plus I like the free<br />

advertising<br />

What needs fixing most urgently in<br />

driving generally?<br />

Other road users, if that’s at all<br />

possible. There are some very<br />

inconsiderate drivers out there. I should<br />

stress there are some lovely ones, too.<br />

What should the DVSA focus on?<br />

At the moment their backlog of tests.<br />

We understand the reason but come on,<br />

let’s see some action!<br />

What’s the next big thing that’s going to<br />

transform driver training/testing?<br />

Electric cars... I’m a big fan if they<br />

save the environment.<br />

How can we improve driver testing/<br />

training in one move?<br />

Remove manoeuvres from the L-test.<br />

Let’s see them signed off by the<br />

instructor so more time can be spent<br />

driving.<br />

Who/what inspires you, drives you on?<br />

My kids and grand kids... they always<br />

have a positive outlook<br />

What keeps you awake at night?<br />

Worrying about family!<br />

No one is the finished article. What do<br />

you do to keep on top of the game?<br />

I keep on top of and follow updated<br />

guidelines from MSA, from colleagues<br />

and from the DVSA. Information is good!!<br />

What’s the daftest /most dangerous<br />

thing that’s ever happened to you while<br />

teaching?<br />

A client trying to pull out on dual<br />

carriageway roundabout thinking they<br />

were good to go... trust me, they were<br />

NOT!<br />

When or where are you happiest?<br />

When I’m travelling and meeting new<br />

people or with my friends and family...<br />

they are both things that I’m really<br />

missing right now.<br />

Left, Kris with her<br />

‘Pudsey-d up’<br />

tuition car, as she<br />

prepares to take<br />

part in the Big<br />

Learner Relay for<br />

Children in Need<br />

42 NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

ADIs have a value long after the L-test<br />

Mike Yeomans<br />

MSA GB North East<br />

Seasons greetings to all, and a big thank<br />

you to the members of MSA North East<br />

for their support during this last year.<br />

What an interesting year we have all<br />

had – and what an interesting year we<br />

have to come, too, with a new head to<br />

the DVSA, changes to Standards Check<br />

procedures and the way we go about our<br />

every day business.<br />

In the North East we are keen to help<br />

ADIs get the best out of the situations we<br />

face. We are running courses to help<br />

members to connect more and receive<br />

up-to-date information from NASP and<br />

MSA GB.<br />

In the North East we have several<br />

non-ADI members who have joined so<br />

they can tap into our knowledge on road<br />

safety issues and to enhance their ability<br />

to deliver diversion schemes and work<br />

with company drivers on risk<br />

assessments.<br />

Increasingly I find many ADIs are<br />

diversifying their work from the<br />

traditional route of learner driver licence<br />

acquisition. They are taking on the<br />

training of other ADIs through ORDIT, or<br />

helping companies with fleets manage<br />

the transition to electric vehicles, or<br />

simply offering training and guidance on<br />

the best methods to keep the driving<br />

workforces safe. I guess it is the next<br />

step after the ‘L’ test.<br />

As currently the graduated driving<br />

licence is not being pursued by the UK<br />

government, many driver trainers are<br />

continuing to press on with encouraging<br />

ex-students to take further training, and<br />

looking to work with the organisations<br />

they themselves work for.<br />

Here within the North East region we<br />

can help with those developments;<br />

guidance is always available for getting<br />

the best out of the ADI business.<br />

An ADI is not JUST an ADI. A<br />

professional ADI is mentor, confidante<br />

and imparter of knowledge, someone<br />

who keeps people safe on our roads for<br />

life. From L-test to buses and lorries,<br />

from tanks to off-roaders, we are pivotal<br />

in imparting the best and safest<br />

knowledge. Never undervalue your place<br />

in the industry; remember, there are<br />

many opportunities to enhance and to<br />

sell your skills.<br />

So, regardless of the rough year many<br />

of us have had, we are still vital, and it<br />

really can be and will be an exciting year<br />

to come.<br />

MSA GB North East CPD meeting and<br />

AGM, October 29<br />

There was a reasonable turn out for our<br />

North East AGM at the very end of<br />

October and as you’ll probably guess,<br />

lots of questions on the situation for ADIs<br />

on the second lockdown.<br />

We were grateful to MSA GB National<br />

Chairman Peter Harvey MBE for leading<br />

the response. He was quick to answer<br />

questions and gave those meeting us on<br />

Zoom a detailed update on the industry<br />

changes, from waiting rooms to<br />

Standards Checks and all the other<br />

concerns that ADIs have at this moment<br />

in time.<br />

At the AGM, presided over by the MSA<br />

GB Deputy National Chairman Geoff<br />

Little, the 2020 committee were<br />

re-elected for 2021. We are looking<br />

forward to the National Conference in<br />

March 2021 when the positions will be<br />

ratified.<br />

CONTACT<br />

To comment on this article, or provide<br />

updates from your area, contact<br />

Mike at chair.ne@msagb.com<br />

Christmas Greetings...<br />

from MSA GB Greater London to all MSA members.<br />

This is the moment you share time, enjoy and be happy with<br />

your family.<br />

My committee and I wishing you all a Merry Christmas, and<br />

let’s hope for peace on Earth.<br />

Tom Kwok, MSA GB Greater London Chairman<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

43


Motoring news<br />

UK takes next STEP in kerbside<br />

electric vehicle charging<br />

World-first technology that could<br />

unlock electric vehicle charging at<br />

homes without drives or garages<br />

is being trialled in London. Sarah<br />

Clements, Senior Consultant at<br />

element-energy.co.uk reports<br />

Start-up company Trojan Energy is<br />

installing 200 of its electric vehicle<br />

chargers across the London boroughs of<br />

Brent and Camden in a bid to solve the<br />

problem of how to charge electric<br />

vehicles in for those homes which do not<br />

have a garage or drive.<br />

Each charge point is slotted into the<br />

ground with a flat and flush connection.<br />

The technology has no permanent<br />

footprint or street clutter as the hardware<br />

is only visible when a vehicle is charging.<br />

The Subsurface Technology for Electric<br />

Pathways (STEP) project has been<br />

awarded £3m in co-funding by Innovate<br />

UK. If successful it will enable entire<br />

streets to be filled with the charge points<br />

so that no matter where a driver parks,<br />

they will be able to charge their EV.<br />

The technology consists of two parts<br />

– a charge point slotted into the ground,<br />

and a ‘lance’ which is inserted into the<br />

charge point in order to charge. The<br />

charger can provide charge rates from<br />

2kW to 22kW, and up to 18 chargers can<br />

run in parallel from one electricity<br />

network connection. This will in turn<br />

create opportunities for electric vehicle<br />

owners to use spare capacity in their<br />

batteries to provide services to electricity<br />

network operators which could make the<br />

cost of owning and running EVs cheaper.<br />

Brent and Camden are at the forefront<br />

of the EV transition in the UK. Both<br />

boroughs have rapidly growing EV usage,<br />

encouraged by council policy determined<br />

to drive down air pollution in their<br />

neighbourhoods.<br />

Cllr Shama Tatler, Lead Member for<br />

Regeneration, Property and Planning at<br />

London Borough of Brent, said the<br />

council was “thrilled to be among the first<br />

to try these innovative new charging<br />

points. Electric vehicles will play an<br />

important part in improving our local air<br />

quality which we know can have a<br />

detrimental impact on people’s health.<br />

“I hope these discrete kerbside chargers<br />

will make electric vehicles accessible for<br />

more people and get us one step closer to<br />

our aim of becoming a zero-carbon borough.”<br />

The technology has been developed by<br />

Trojan Energy, a team of ex-oil industry<br />

engineers determined to use their subsea<br />

skills for good, and contribute towards<br />

solving the problem of high CO 2<br />

emissions.<br />

Trojan Energy Managing Director, Ian<br />

Mackenzie said: “We are grateful for the<br />

support we have received from our<br />

consortium partners and Innovate UK.<br />

This backing will allow us to bring our<br />

discrete kerbside charging to cities where<br />

the need to transition to EVs is greatest.<br />

Our technology will allow us to electrify<br />

whole streets at a fraction of the cost of<br />

traditional charging infrastructure and<br />

without the need for kerbside clutter. We<br />

are looking forward to bringing this revo-<br />

lutionary solution to London and beyond”.<br />

Element Energy, a strategic energy<br />

consultancy specialising in the analysis of<br />

low carbon energy, is leading the project,<br />

using its sectoral and project management<br />

expertise to achieve the best commercial<br />

and environmental return for investment.<br />

Celine Cluzel, Element Energy Director,<br />

said “STEP is trialling a solution to what<br />

is often the Achilles’ heel of charging<br />

infrastructure: scalability. The project is<br />

also conducting research on consumer<br />

and wider street users’ preference – a<br />

typical gap in research so far. These facts,<br />

combined with the excellent team<br />

brought together, make us confident that<br />

the trial will be a significant step forward<br />

for the uptake of electric vehicles.”<br />

Other members of the consortium<br />

include UK Power Networks, Birmingham<br />

City Council and the University of Leeds.<br />

Award-winning renewable electricity<br />

supplier Octopus Energy will also be<br />

recruiting their customers for the trial and<br />

providing expertise in back end billing<br />

which will be invaluable to EV owners.<br />

A key aspect of the trial involves<br />

collecting consumer feedback on the<br />

technology and gathering new information<br />

on the charging behaviour of EV drivers<br />

who park on-street. This research will be<br />

led by the Institute for Transport Studies<br />

at the University of Leeds, which is a<br />

world-renowned research establishment,<br />

alongside input from Element Energy,<br />

which also has previous experience of<br />

conducting EV trials. Feedback from this<br />

research will crucially inform the<br />

development of commercialisation plans.<br />

44<br />

A CGI mock-up of how the STEP<br />

charging system will look


Test centre changes<br />

For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

There have been a number of changes to<br />

driving test centres during November, as<br />

the DVSA continues to reform its estate<br />

to cope with Covid-19 restrictions, new<br />

regulations, maintenance issues and<br />

fluctuations in customer demand.<br />

Gillingham driving test centre<br />

The driving test centre in Gillingham will<br />

be temporarily relocating during March<br />

2021.<br />

Car, motorcycle module 2 and ADI<br />

tests will be temporarily carried out from<br />

the LGV test centre in Gillingham from<br />

March 1 to March 26. Additional<br />

motorcycle module 1 test provision will<br />

be provided at Erith and Herne Bay test<br />

centres during this time. Testing will<br />

resume from March 29.<br />

Gillingham LGV test centre is at<br />

Ambley Road, Gillingham, Kent ME8 0SJ<br />

Penzance driving test centre<br />

Repairs made to a leak at Penzance<br />

driving test centre roof have led to the<br />

discovery of asbestos in the ceiling.<br />

This needs to be safely removed and<br />

disposed of before extensive repair work<br />

can be completed.<br />

This work is on-going, and L-test will<br />

continue out of Cambourne driving test<br />

centre until Penzance can safely reopen.<br />

Herne Bay driving test centre<br />

The driving test centre at Herne Bay<br />

will now carry out car and trailer (B+E)<br />

tests, alongside the other tests currently<br />

carried out here.<br />

If you are a trainer booker, please note<br />

that the opening day for booking these<br />

tests week commencing 25 January will<br />

fall on a Tuesday, in line with Mod1&2<br />

tests, instead of the normal opening day.<br />

This only applies to that week.<br />

Bristol (Brislington) driving test centre<br />

The DVSA is closing its driving test<br />

centre at Bristol (Brislington) after the<br />

landlord served notice.<br />

The last day of testing at Flowers Hill<br />

on Bath Road will be February 19.<br />

Alternative nearby test centres include<br />

Bristol (Kingswood) and Bristol<br />

(Avonmouth). Candidates travelling from<br />

Bath will also be able to use the test<br />

centres at either Chippenham or<br />

Trowbridge.<br />

The DVSA has said it is looking for a<br />

new venue to accommodate tests in the<br />

Brislington area.<br />

Chertsey driving test centre<br />

The driving test centre in Chertsey will<br />

be temporarily closing from March 18<br />

2021 so that refurbishment work can<br />

take place. Test capacity will be<br />

increased at nearby test centres in<br />

Ashford, Guildford, Slough, Farnborough,<br />

Morden, Mitcham, and Redhill.<br />

It is hoped that testing will resume at<br />

the normal test site on April 21.<br />

Oxford (Cowley Road)<br />

The driving test centre in Oxford<br />

(Cowley Road) will be temporarily<br />

relocating during March and April 2021.<br />

The new location will be the Oxford<br />

Kassam Stadium, which will host tests<br />

from March 22 until April 20, with<br />

testing resuming at Cowley Road from<br />

April 22. The address of the temporary<br />

tests centre is: Oxford Kassam Stadium,<br />

Grenoble Road, Oxford OX4 4XP<br />

Tolworth driving test centre<br />

The driving test centre in Tolworth will<br />

be temporarily closing from March 18<br />

2021 so that refurbishment work can<br />

take place.<br />

Test capacity will be increased at<br />

nearby test centres in Ashford, Guildford,<br />

Slough, Farnborough, Morden, Mitcham,<br />

and Redhill. Motorcycle module 2 test<br />

capacity will also be increased at<br />

Farnborough and Mitcham. Testing will<br />

resume at Tolworth on April 21.<br />

Ashford (Kent)<br />

The driving test centre in Ashford<br />

(Kent) will be temporarily relocating<br />

during March 2021. Tests will be carried<br />

out at the temporary location at The<br />

Riverside Centre from March 1 until<br />

March 26.<br />

Testing will resume at the normal<br />

location at the Civic Centre on March 29.<br />

We have emailed anyone with a test<br />

booked during this time to let them know<br />

about the new location.<br />

The address of the new, temporary<br />

location is: The Riverside Centre,<br />

Gateway Church Ashford, Clockhouse,<br />

Ashford TN23 4YN<br />

Aberfeldy driving test centre<br />

The driving test centre in Aberfeldy will<br />

be reopening for testing from January 6<br />

2021. The DVSA will email candidates<br />

who are already on hold waiting for a<br />

test to offer them a suitable time and<br />

date.<br />

Ban buds on<br />

cyclists, says<br />

world survey<br />

The majority of road users support<br />

banning people from wearing<br />

headphones while cycling, a new<br />

international survey has found.<br />

The survey, conducted across 32<br />

countries by the E-Survey of Road<br />

Users’ Attitudes (ESRA), found that<br />

two-thirds of the 35,000 respondents<br />

were in support of introducing a ban<br />

on cyclists wearing headphones.<br />

Support was a little higher in the UK<br />

where 68.2 per cent of people said<br />

that they were in favour of the ban.<br />

Across Europe, support for the<br />

ban on cyclists wearing headphones<br />

varied. Spain felt most strongly<br />

about the introduction of the policy<br />

with nearly 80 per cent of all road<br />

users surveyed in that country<br />

voting in its favour. Finland,<br />

however, felt least strongly, with<br />

only one in three (36 per cent)<br />

believing the ban would be a good<br />

move. In Germany and Hungary,<br />

support for the ban was at similar<br />

levels to those in the UK at 69.8 per<br />

cent and 69.9 per cent respectively.<br />

The European average was 66.5<br />

per cent in support of the ban, with<br />

even cycle-loving Holland and<br />

Denmark showing small majorities<br />

in favour of new controls.<br />

Internationally, female road users<br />

were more in favour than males of a<br />

ban on headphones or earbuds<br />

while cycling.<br />

Neil Greig, Policy and Research<br />

Director at IAM RoadSmart, said:<br />

“It’s clear that the majority of road<br />

users are very concerned about<br />

distracted cyclists wearing<br />

headphones or earbuds while riding.<br />

“Being plugged in to either<br />

headphones or earbuds is the<br />

ultimate distraction, as it completely<br />

shuts you off to your surroundings,<br />

creating a potential road safety risk.”<br />

www.msagb.com<br />

45


Membership<br />

Members’ discounts and benefits<br />

MSA GB has organised a number of exclusive discounts and offers for members. More details can be found on our website at<br />

www.msagb.com. To access these benefits, simply log in and click on the Member discount logo, then click the link at the<br />

bottom of the page to allow you to obtain your special discounts. Please note, non-members will be required to join the<br />

association first. Terms and conditions apply<br />

Ford launches special offer<br />

for MSA GB members<br />

Some exciting news for members: Ford has partnered with<br />

MSA GB to offer exclusive discounts on all car and<br />

commercial Ford vehicles.<br />

Take a look at the Ford website www.ford.co.uk for vehicle<br />

and specification information.<br />

For further information, to view frequently asked questions,<br />

to request a quote and to access the member discount<br />

codes, please go to the Members’ Benefits page on the MSA<br />

GB website and follow the Ford link.<br />

Please note these discounts are only available to MSA GB<br />

members and their immediate family if they are members<br />

who pay annually.<br />

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Together we are on a mission to<br />

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CPD & TRAINING<br />

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As part of its new relationship<br />

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MSA OFFER: 20% off all Tri-Coaching<br />

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Driving shouldn’t just be a<br />

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this the case! MSA GB members can take<br />

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MSA OFFER: Special Driving Instructor<br />

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HEALTH / FINANCE COVER<br />

The Motor Schools Association of Great Britain<br />

has agreed with HMCA to offer discounted<br />

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cash plans, personal accident<br />

plan, travel plan, income<br />

protection and vehicle<br />

breakdown products.<br />

MSA OFFER: HMCA only offer<br />

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groups and can offer up to a 40% discount off<br />

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This is a comprehensive plan which provides<br />

generous cash benefits for surgery and other<br />

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To get the full story of<br />

the discounts available,<br />

see www.msagb.com<br />

46 NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020


For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com<br />

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that all employment laws are complied with.<br />

MSA OFFER:: 15% offer for MSA members.<br />

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES<br />

Driving Instructor Services offers call<br />

handing, web design, reports and pupil<br />

text reminders, to name a few<br />

of our services.<br />

MSA OFFER:: Free trial<br />

of all our services and 10%<br />

discount for the life of your<br />

MSA membership.<br />

PSYCHOLOGY TRAINING<br />

Confident Drivers has the<br />

only website created<br />

especially for drivers offering<br />

eight different psychological<br />

techniques commonly used<br />

to reduce stress and nerves.<br />

MSA OFFER: One month free on a monthly<br />

subscription plan using coupon code.<br />

PUPIL SOURCING<br />

Go Roadie provides students<br />

when they need them, with<br />

all the details you need<br />

before you accept. Control<br />

your own pricing, discounts<br />

and set your availability to suit you. Full<br />

diary? No cost!<br />

MSA OFFER: Introductory offer of 50% off<br />

the first three students they accept.<br />

TYRES<br />

VRedestein’s impressive range<br />

of tyres includes the awardwinning<br />

Quatrac 5 and the<br />

new Quatrac Pro – offering<br />

year-round safety and<br />

performance.<br />

MSA OFFER: 10% discount on purchases<br />

across our tyre ranges.<br />

To get the full story of<br />

the discounts available,<br />

see www.msagb.com<br />

Membership offer<br />

Welcome new ADIs<br />

We’ve a special introductory offer for you!<br />

Congratulations on passing<br />

your Part 3 and becoming<br />

an ADI.<br />

There’s an exciting career<br />

open to you from today.<br />

It’s one that is alive with<br />

possibilities as you build<br />

your skills, your client<br />

base and your income.<br />

But for all the excitement, it<br />

can also be a challenging<br />

profession. Who can you turn to if<br />

you’re struggling to get over key driver<br />

training issues to a pupil? Where can you<br />

go to soak up advice from more<br />

experienced ADIs? Who will help you if<br />

you are caught up in a dispute with the<br />

DVSA? If the worst happens, who can you<br />

turn to for help, advice and to fight your<br />

corner?<br />

The answer is the Motor Schools<br />

Association of Great Britain – MSA GB<br />

for short.<br />

We are the most senior association<br />

representing driving instructors in Great<br />

Britain. Establised in 1935 when the first<br />

driving test was introduced, MSA GB has<br />

been working tirelessly ever since on<br />

behalf of ordinary rank and file ADIs.<br />

We represent your interests and your<br />

views in the corridors of power, holding<br />

regular meetings with senior officials from<br />

the DVSA and the Department for<br />

Transport to make sure the ADIs’ voice is<br />

heard.<br />

SPECIAL OFFER<br />

We’d like you to join us<br />

We’re there to support you every<br />

step of the way. Our officebased<br />

staff are there, five<br />

days a week, from 9am-<br />

5.30pm, ready to answer<br />

your call and help you in any<br />

way.<br />

In addition our network of<br />

experienced office holders and<br />

regional officers can offer advice<br />

over the phone or by email.<br />

But membership of the MSA doesn’t just<br />

mean we’re there for you if you’re in<br />

trouble. We also offer a nationwide<br />

network of regular meetings, seminars<br />

and training events, an Annual<br />

Conference, and a chance to participate in<br />

MSA GB affairs through our democratic<br />

structure<br />

In addition, you’ll get a free link to our<br />

membership magazine <strong>Newslink</strong> every<br />

month, with all the latest news, views,<br />

comment and advice you’ll need to<br />

become a successful driving instructor.<br />

You’ll also automatically receive<br />

professional indemnity insurance worth<br />

up to £5m and £10m public liability<br />

insurance free of charge.<br />

This is essential legal protection covering<br />

you against legal claims ariving from your<br />

tuition.<br />

So join us today and save £25<br />

including the first year’s joining fee:<br />

just £60 for 12 months.<br />

Join MSA GB today!<br />

and save yourself £25<br />

Call 0800 0265986 quoting<br />

discount code <strong>Newslink</strong>, or join<br />

online at www.msagb.com<br />

Just<br />

£60<br />

for 12 months<br />

membership<br />

www.msagb.com 47

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