Grandson lives in Texas and at 15 he got his Provisional.
He has been out in the car with his dad for roughly 2 to 3 hours per week for a year.
40+ hours on-line videos/questions on driving.
There are no driving schools like we have in the in the UK, Driving Test requirements are more modest than the UK
He was looking to sit his test so his dad arrange 3 x 1.5 hours with Tony's Driving Tuition.
First 2 went fine and the lad went out on Saturday Morning for No 3
He came out with an envelope containing a PASS certificate.
The woman who gave him the 2 lessons is also a contract Driving Test Examiner so she provided him with a pass as in her words " 80 minutes driving and did all that was required to pass his test"
Really worrying from a driving instructor marking of a learner who is paying her money for instruction!
He has to go to the licencing centre with his paperwork, photograph and new licence issued.
He then, in theory can drive on the roads - 8-10 lanes in each direction in a few places across the 30 mile wide city roads!
In under 2 years he is looking to come to university here - that will be a "real test" that he will have to pass within 6 months of arriving here!
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>>that will be a "real test"
A relative from Sydney came over and refused to drive - couldn't cope with the narrow roads!
Her hubby was British (£10 POM), but too old to hire a car from the hire company that they chose so I got them one that did hire to elderly drivers and he was happy.
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My grandfather started driving in 1902, my father in 1925. Neither of them took a test as it wasn’t required then, they simply bought a licence at the post office. My half brother started driving in 1947 and I began in 1975. None of us have ever had an accident. Well, the others are all dead now, so technically, all I can say is that I haven’t so far, touch wood etc. ;-)
I never met my grandfather, but he was a very early adopter of motorised transport and was apparently very interested in cars and motorcycles. My dad bought a car as soon as he was 17 and his father spent an afternoon with him to show him how it worked and that was about it.
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Interesting but grim statistics.
Texas has a population of 30m. In 2023 they recorded 4268 fatalities.
UK has a population of 70m. In 2023 they recorded 1645 fatalities.
Texas rate 142 is per million, UK is 23 per million.
Whether due to driving test standards or some other factor - poor emergency services, more miles driven, different m mot test standards, more drunk driving etc - is unclear.
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In 1979 Eire handed out full licences to people who had held provisionals for a while, to get rid of a backlog. This even applied to people who had previously failed a test..
These licences are fully valid in U.K. I have a friend who got his licence in that way. I don’t know how good a driver he was in 1979 but, for what it’s worth he is a good driver now.
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>> In 1979 Eire handed out full licences to people who had held provisionals for a
>> while, to get rid of a backlog. This even applied to people who had previously
>> failed a test..
>>
>>
One of my cousins got his licence like that. It was due to an eighteen month long strike by test examiners.
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For roughly 30 years the Eire accident rate was well above the previous year averages before 1979
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I have a Texas drivers license. It's now expired but I can renew it on my next visit if I want.
The driving test was conducted by the Austin Dept. of Public Safety and consisted of a computerised theory and hazard perception test (with video) followed by a practical test. The practical test covered state highways and residential roads plus parallel parking and manoeuvering around cones at the exam center. It wasn't difficult for an experienced driver but certainly wasn't trivial - probably on a par with the UK test. (In contrast, my driving test in Namibia was a two mile round trip to the stationery office because they'd run out of Pass certificates.)
2023 fatality stats for Texas here:
www.txdot.gov/content/dam/docs/trf/crash-reports-records/2023/01.pdf
49% of drivers not wearing seatbelts. 40% of bikers not wearing helmets.
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Most people on here won't have been around during the Suez crisi. I was just seventeen and had my provisional driving licence. Due to the petrol crisis all driving tests were stopped and holders of provisional licences were allowed to drive unaccompanied by a full licence holder. I was in my element, but was constantly being stopped by the police demanding to see my licence. Apparently, i didn't look seventeen, being the reason.
A year later and driving tests resumed and I passed first time.
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In 1956 an uncle ran petrol pumps, 3 ambulances were based at the garage and he was also an undertaker with 4 cars
No problem of petrol rationing for him - unlimited filling of ambulances / funeral cars with most diverted to his car and that of a few selected friends
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A relative of wifey (well over 7 foot tall) took his driving test eleven times to pass. Not that he's crap, he just refused to pay the going bribe. That was twenty-odd years ago, it doesn't happen now.
He's a patrol driver cop now.
We see him every Christmas and I always ask him if he's pulled his gun out yet. And he always says the same - never needed to, they always crap themselves when he steps out of the car.
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It's not just the Driving Test that is different in Texas.
About 2 years ago my D-i-L & Grandson were in a queue of 5 cars on the slip road to a dual carriageway. She was in the middle of the 5.
Youngish driver of a battered pick-up came over a rise and slammed into 5 cars that were stopped.
He had a $25K limit on 3rd party insurance (£25,000 not millions).
1st car hit - older car - write off -scrap
2nd - older car - write off - scrap
D-i-L - 18 month old X5 - write off (repairable)
4th - Toyota Camry - bumper/boot & lights
5th - no real damage other than bumper paint
Everybody got out, no injuries. Police called - arrested the pick-up truck driver - careless driving from what I understand - fined in court case.
1 year on
My son, the car owner, was interviewed by a lawyer/ambulance chaser.
Wanted to know all about him - his home, his employment, salary................. He was told the minimum and no personal details.
2 years on
My D-i-L was interviewed over Teams as to what happened.
4 Lawyers representing including one from my son's insurer. This is taking Court evidence which will be passed to a judge to apportion blame & damages
The Toyota driver my D-i-L was shunted into is claiming (Drum roll) $150,000 for PTSD
My son's insurer has offered $500 - take it or leave it!
My son was offered $20,000 for his wife & son's trauma from the car that hit the back of his car - he refused it as they were 100% OK. Taking money would have been in the interests of the Toyota in front suing him!
The only person with blame is the pick-up truck driver but with effectively no insurance and no assets of any kind - lived on a trailer park - he walks away having paid a $few hundred in court fines.
UK - it would have been MIB (Motor Insurance Bureau) that would have paid out to all 5 damaged cars -we all pay money to our insurer that funds MIB. MIB pays out in such circumstances here in the UK.
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My Grandad was born in 1916, and acquired a licence in the early 30's before tests came in. He was working at the time in motorbike and car garages, so was sent along to do a test when they came out to find out what it was like and provide info to customers - he managed a pass.
During the war he was a machinist, working on Wellington bombers down near Blackpool - but living in Barrow in Furness so commuting. There were 'opportunities' to acquire 100 octane Av Gas from the pool at the factory - and at the time he was using a Douglas motorbike, which had a flat twin fore/aft 4 stroke engine. He reported that it went very well on the avgas, but had a tendency to burn exhaust valves - so much so that he carried a spare and could change them at the side of the road. When we cleared his garage out we found a small g cramp with a specially made end on it - most likely the tool used to compress the valve springs to change said exhaust valves.
It's also possible that the motorbike I inherited from him (1928 Velocette Model U) also made this journey - we have insurance docs from the time showing insurance moving back and forwards between the Douglas and the Velo. This is a 2 stroke, so no valves to burn here!
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Grandson passes driving test & he did not know! - zippy
