“To market, to market” they say, but how do you get to the market? Before you say, “car,” we want to point out all the other alternative ways to get to market. Cars are great, we love them, they’re helpful. We can pack them with our bags, throw in our shopping, be covered from the rain, be warm and get from door to door. But so many of us are dependent on our cars. Paul from horley driving lessons says  with the rise in fuel prices it’s worth looking at alternative ways to travel. And there are alternative ways, there are many. We just need to have a look and see what we can find.
Walking more, using buses, jumping on a bike and taking the train are all alternative options to jumping in your car. These are all  things that can be used more often. Not only will you get a bit more exercise using these things, you will be making a positive impact on the environment too. It’s always nice doing our part to help the environment. It’s worth noting that you can always find times of busses and trams quite easily. You can either look online or phone up your local companies and check with them.

On her final season, the multibillion dollar media personality, talk show host, actress and philanthropist, Oprah Winfrey, urged her viewers to sign a pledge to say they wouldn’t use their phone whilst driving. And we think we need to mention it again.

We all know the dangers of texting and driving and talking whilst driving. Most of us don’t do it. The temptation to use your phone usually comes when you are stuck in traffic and the lights seem like they will be on red for an age and you phone starts buzzing. You think that a quick 10 seconds won’t make a difference, but the thing is, it does.

When you are driving you need to alert all the time. There could be an ambulance approaching, the car in front may break down, there could be a cyclist coming up behind you. The lights may change faster than you anticipated. The problem is, when you make a mistake you can never turn the clock back. So please, never use your phone when driving.

Paul from surrey driving lessons says, the best thing to do is pull up in a safe and convenient place and take your call. If you’re on the motorway, the safest thing to do is go to a service station.

This article is not anti-mobiles. Mobiles are hugely useful, they connect us to our loved ones, work, emails, they allow us to call someone when we need to and that’s great. But, you can’t use phones when driving. Ever.

We don’t want to rain on anyone’s parade but we have to mention it. And ladies, we’re sorry but we are talking to you, mainly. The thing we are talking about and the issue that we want to address is with high (sometimes, very high) heels. Experts are urging women up and down the country, from Europe to Asia, Africa and beyond, to wear more sensible shoes when driving. It has been found that wearing the wrong shoes can at worst, cause you to loose control of the vehicle and cause an accident.

The thing is, the answer to the problem is really simple. It’s not at all difficult. All you really need to do is have a spare pair of shoes in the car. A pair of cheap pumps/trainers/flats will do. It really does make sense to have a pair, especially when they can make a difference on how you handle the vehicle. When it’s something as simple as this, it’s worth following through.

It is important to remember that it is our responsibility to drive safely. It is not worth taking a risk. The increasing rate of accidents taking place has called for immediate actions to be taken.

Paul from surrey driving lessons said, “Wearing inappropriate footwear could cause the driver to lose control of the car”. It is a timely warning. So please, follow our guidelines and have a spare of comfortable shoes in the car.

Radical changes are set to be made in Northern Ireland to the rules governing learner drivers.

At present new drivers for the first year after passing their practical driving test must display “R” plates (Restricted) which limits them to 45mph until the restricted period ends. However, Environment Minister Alex Attwood is considering allowing new drivers to travel at speeds of 70mph on the motorway.

Even more exciting for new drivers, is talks over lowering the legal age to obtain a drivers licence. At present, you have to be 17 years old in order to obtain a provisional licence however, they are considering reducing it to 16 years of age. There would be restrictions in place, such as you would not be allowed to take the test for a period of time, possibly up to a year. However, this still means that learners can start the learning process a year earlier at 16 and be ready to take the test at 17. Don’t too excited over here as these changes will not affect your redhill driving lessons, this is just in Northern Ireland….

One of Britain’s most iconic publications is undergoing a digital revolution today as Transport Secretary, Justine Greening, marks the Highway Code’s 81st year by launching it as an interactive app for smartphones.

The best-seller’s technological transformation will make it even easier – and more fun – for road users to keep up to date with the rules of the road.

Much of the Highway Code’s content has changed considerably since its launch in 1931. For example mirrors were not even mentioned in the first edition and drivers were advised to sound their horn when overtaking.

Moved with the times

How road users access its content has also moved with the times. It is already free to read online, can be downloaded as an ebook and there are also Facebook and Twitter accounts offering regular topical reminders.

Paul from redhill driving lessons says this should work well with the new age of smart phone teenager’s..

Now a new app for the iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch will make it even easier to keep up to date with the rules of the road through a more intuitive, interactive format.

Transport Secretary Justine Greening said:

“With more and more of us using smartphones and other devices it’s vital that products like the Highway Code adapt to be as accessible as possible.

“The app makes it easier for everyone to keep their knowledge up to date and is a great example of how new technology can help to improve road safety.

“The Highway Code has been helping to save lives for more than 80 years and, with innovations like this, I am confident it will do so for many more to come.”

Easy to find rules

The new app includes the complete contents of the Highway Code with a search facility making it easy to find rules and information. There are also interactive features like quizzes, a stopping distance calculator and a tool to help users identify road signs.

The Official Highway Code app is available on iTunes for £3.99.

BUY IT >

For other official Highway Code publications visit the TSO shop.

The Highway Code is free to view online at direct.gov.uk/highwaycode.

Well done Chris Ratcliffe, passed his driving test test first time today, and with only one drivng fault too !!

Chris started his redhill driving lessons after work and weekends, he had 3-4 lessons per week.

If you would like to be part of our first time pass rate then contact us to book your first lesson.

Finally, a very positive move in the vehicle industry. It is a positive way to drive the change.

Recent figures provided by Chargemaster reveals a new ever changing environment. It is an electric vehicle charging unit supplier who firstly had the vision and the commitment to excellence to chase this, who has delivered some revealing statistics.  A total of 1,000 people took part in a survey. The most interesting bit is that 58 per cent of the participants revealed that they would like to switch over to an electric vehicle (EV) in the near future. It would appear that more of us are become conscious of the effect our vehicles are having on the environment. We must do what we can and a lot of people have. At first, it was recycling bottles, then it was using recycle bins for grass, glass, cardboard and such.  Now we are ready to see how we can change our cars.

But, there could also be other reasons why we are so ready to switch to electric cars. The rising fuel rices can be taken as a warning sign. Pricing have been rising and many surrey drivers have been unable to use their cars as much as they would like.

The popularity of electric cars is growing, it’s not too difficult to see a millions of people ready to trade in their cars with more cheaper, environmentally friendly versions. It provides better balance between living a healthy and balanced life. It is the future trend of transportation. The emergence of driving green technology is becoming far more aggressive and universal in nature. It is something that we look forward to seeing how it evolves.

There are road signs all around us, weather you already are a driver or just starting your surrey driving lessons and they are there for an important reason. The message is always written clearly and if you’ve done your homework you will know what they mean. They are there for your safety. Road signs should be taken seriously. People often overlook them or do not pay attention at all. Why? I think it’s because we get too relaxed and comfortable. But we must remember that driving is not a task that should be taken lightly. A car can be a blessing, and it most cases it is, but other times, when used for the wrong reasons it can have horrific effects.

We must therefore look for road signs  and understand their importance. Study them, remember them, test your self on them. Go back to your books. Remember they are there to help us drive more safely. We must drive safe because if we don’t then accidents happen. The road signs are very easy to read and understand. It is highly advisable to read them whenever you are traveling to a new and different place. It takes one wrong turn to keep on running in circles for hours.

Here’s what to do:

1. When you get in your car, make a conscious effort to look for road signs

2. Ask your self, “what does that mean?”

3. Then say, “do I have alter the way I am driving because of the road sign?”

It may be worth doing these things when you go for a walk. It’s amazing how many road signs you will see.

A DSA examiner from Lincoln has appeared in court to deny taking money and attempting to gain sexual favours in return for passing learner drivers on test.

Mr Cwierzona worked at the Barnet test centre as an examiner and has been accused of attempting to obtain money in exchange for passing pupils, yet he denies all charges.

Four defendants accused of corruption because they had agreed to pay or did pay Mr Cwierzona are also due to appear in court.

The monetary value offered to Mr Cwierzona was thought to be between £80 and £500 from the various learners.

Not only has this examiner defied the DSA and their rules and regulations for passing horley driving lessons learners passed on their merit and performance on the day, but he is potentially endangering lives. If these learners felt they were competent enough to pass there would have been no need to pay the examiner.  If Mr Cwierzona had got away with this, we could have many drivers on the road who are not safe.

The DSA (Driving Standards Agency) who conduct all driving tests are set to trial tablet computers in a bid to cut down on paper use and time interpreting the candidate’s data.

At present, an examiner will complete a paper examination form on the day of the test and no matter what the result, the form is sent off to the DSA’s head office in Newcastle to be processed. If a candidate is successful the information then needs to be sent to the DVLA in order for a full licence to be issued.

The tablet computers are hoped to save time, money and speed up the process of obtaining your full licence, not to mention save trees. With the DSA conducting over 1.6million tests last year alone, they needed to review the current old fashioned way of recording test data.

Paul from redhill driving lessons says, great, but how much will this cost the candidate and what will happen when the tablet pc crashes !!! does that mean the test is abandoned ? ummm….