Helping Learner drivers become safer drivers

8 February, 2013Posted in: Community, Events
 ,

Teaching a young person to drive can be a daunting task, but a number of upcoming Council workshops and hands-on driving events may prove of assistance to parents in the Southern Highlands.

Wingecarribee Shire Council’s Road Safety Officer, Melanie Lausz, said that statistics show that inexperienced drivers, especially young people (17-20 years of age) are overrepresented in serious motor vehicle crashes.

“Novice drivers in their first year of solo driving are particularly vulnerable,” Ms Lausz said. “Their rate of involvement in fatal crashes is around three times the average crash rate for all drivers across NSW.”

2011 road crash statistics show that out of all the people injured or killed in accidents in the Wingecarribee Shire, 28 per cent are between the ages of 17 and 25 years.

Parents and supervisors of novice drivers have a crucial role to play in making our roads safer. The NSW Graduated Licensing Scheme (GLS) requires that all learner drivers must obtain a minimum amount of documented supervised driving experience.

“Not everyone is confident about documenting the prescribed driving experience correctly or teaching someone to drive in different conditions,” Ms Lausz said. “Consequently, Council will be holding a free two-hour Graduated Licensing Scheme (GLS) Workshop next Wednesday evening and a Logbook Run on Sunday the 24 March.”

GLS Workshop – Wednesday 13 February, 6.30pm to 8.30pm in Council’s Moss Vale Civic Centre

The GLS Workshop provides practical advice on supervision, completing the Log Book and new licence conditions.

The presentation will reinforce the importance of a ‘stepped approach’ to allow learner drivers to obtain their initial driving experience in lower risk road locations, and then gradually presenting them with more complex situations.

Participants also learn the importance of teaching ‘low risk driving’ techniques to learners and the role of parents in establishing parameters and support for provisional licence holders.

Log Book Run – Sunday 24 March, 10am Moss Vale

The Log Book Run is a great opportunity for learner drivers to cover some of the many topics included in the Learner Driver Log Book and clock up some valuable driving experience hours.

Maps and directions will be provided for the day, taking learners and their supervisors on a drive that includes a wide range of road conditions and tasks such as random breath tests, roundabouts, traffic lights, narrow bridges and windy roads.

Bookings are essential.

Registration forms can be collected from Wingecarribee Shire Council’s Moss Vale office, Council libraries, the Welby Motor Registry or download a copy at: www.wsc.nsw.gov.au/services/road-safety

For further information contact Wingecarribee Shire Council’s Road Safety Officer on phone 4868 0809.