Is This The New Roadworks Sign?

Posted on 15 May, 2012 by rpldriving

A fed up resident has shown his annoyance at the endless roadworks around Melksham by ‘changing’ the standard roadworks sign.

20120515-084245.jpg

Lib Dem councillor Jon Hubbard said: “Melksham has had a lot of road works taking place and there has been a lot of annoyance at how long it is taking.

“It doesn’t come across as a shock that someone has done this, it is a real problem in the town with roadworks seemingly taking forever.

“I’ve seen a lot of workers sitting around and I’ve raise the issue.

“Recently there was a case when workers were re-doing a road and there were terrible problems. Lanes were closed but there was no one doing any work.

“They certainly haven’t been given the appearance of being hard at work.”

Posted in driving advice, driving news, learner driver news, local driving news, other topics | Tagged melksham, Roadworks, sign, wilts, Wiltshire | Leave a comment

London Bus Drivers Voting On 2012 Olympics Strike

Posted on 15 May, 2012 by rpldriving

Thousands of bus drivers in London will be voting on whether or not to strike in a row over payments during the Olympic Games.

Unite said it had given 21 bus companies operating in London notice of its intention to ballot up to 21,000 of its members next week.

The union has asked for a £500 bonus payment to recognise the “massive increase” in workload during the Olympic Games. This is to take into account the 800,000 extra passengers that will be expected to travel on the buses

Transport for London has called for a resolution with minimal disruption.

The union added that other transport workers, including those on London Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railways, Network Rail and Virgin, would receive hundreds of pounds in extra payments during the Olympics.

To read the full story, take a look at the BBC website

Rob Laird
RPL Driving
Driving lessons Brentwood

Posted in driving news, learner driver news, local driving news | Tagged 2012, bus, drivers, London, Olympics, strike, vote unite | Leave a comment

What Is The Real Cost Of A Speeding Ticket?

Posted on 22 April, 2012 by rpldriving

A typical speeding fine is £60 and 3 points on your driving licence, but new research from the AA shows that a motorist’s first speeding offence can cost four times this because his or her car insurance premium will rise over three years.

Also, anyone caught using a hand-held device to phone, text or email while driving can expect to be treated severely by their insurer and may even find their cover withdrawn, the AA said.

In the past many insurance companies have ignored a first offence, but nowadays that’s not the case. The AA said that is because insurance companies are becoming smarter at identifying higher risk drivers and charge premiums accordingly.

Such premium increases remain but will drop over three years, meaning that with the cost of the fine and premium increase put together, offenders could fork out more than £200 for just one speeding offence.

The reason behind this comes down to increased risk. According to the AA’s figures, those who have a single speeding conviction are 10% to 12% more likely to make a claim than those who have a clean licence. Someone who picks up a second offence is 18% more likely to do so than a driver with just one. A driver caught for crossing a red traffic signal, is 20% to 25% more likely to make a claim.

All this makes the £90+ speed awareness courses (with no points on your licence) seem much more appealing.

However there is much simpler way…

DON’T SPEED.

 

Posted in car insurance, driving advice, driving law, driving news, other topics | Tagged aa, awareness, driving, fines, licence, points, police, speed, speeding | Comments Off

BTI Driving School – Ipswich

Posted on 2 April, 2012 by rpldriving

Just a quick recommendation for a Driving Instructor who is leaving a franchise and setting up his own company.

Barry Martin runs BTI Driving and can offer driving lessons in Ipswich and other nearby areas.

So if you’re looking for a Driving Instructor in Kesgrave, check out the BTI Driving School website

Posted in driving advice, driving news, learner driver news, learner drivers, local driving news | Tagged Barry martin, bti driving, driving, instructor, Ipswich, kesgrave, lessons, martlesham, pass plus, school, test | Comments Off

10,000 Driving Test Passes, But They Can’t Understand English

Posted on 15 February, 2012 by rpldriving

I saw this article earlier today and thought I would share it…

Apparently, roughly 200 people a week pass their driving test using an interpreter to pass on the examiner’s directions in their native tongue. However, there is a risk of the interpreter providing help to the person driving slipping in words like ‘mirrors’, ‘slow’, ‘stop’ or ‘signal’ without the examiner knowing.

Over the last 2 years, 800 people have had their driving licences revoked after DSA investigations have uncovered translators giving extra help to learners during the test. Each one of these investigations costs in the region of £10,000 and a Department of Transport source said that these cases may be the ‘tip of the iceberg’.

Transport minister Mike Penning said: “I find it incredible that Labour thought it was a good idea to let people without basic English loose on our roads.

“Road safety should be our priority, not political correctness.”

Last night the DSA said: “We are reviewing the level of foreign language support currently provided for candidates. Any changes to the current arrangements would be subject to a full public consultation.”

With plans to have the theory test only in English, I can’t see it being too long before the DSA stop having interpreters in the test.

I believe in France and Spain (and probably many more), the tests are only conducted in the country’s own language.

I think this is definitely a step forwards. If I was living in another country, and wanted to take their test, I would at least make an effort to learn enough of the language to get by day to day, and to be able to drive safely.

Rob Laird
RPL Driving
Driving School In Romford 

Posted in driving advice, driving law, driving news, driving test, learner drivers | Tagged driving, dsa, english, interpreter, language, pass, test, theory, translator | Comments Off

Avril’s Driving School

Posted on 13 December, 2011 by rpldriving

A quick recommendation for Avril’s Driving School. Avril Allan is a Driving Instructor in Woking.

She uses a Hyundai i20 which has a manual gearbox and a 1.2 petrol engine. It’s easy to handle, looks good and has an excellent specification including power assisted steering, air conditioning, ABS, dual controls, electric windows, adjustable seat and steering wheel, front and side airbags, easy-to-read dashboard and a spacious interior.

If you are look for driving lessons in Woking take a look at www.avrilsdrivingschool.co.uk

Rob Laird
RPL Driving School

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off

Learner Drivers Will Soon Be Allowed On Motorways

Posted on 9 December, 2011 by rpldriving

This week, Mike Penning (the MP responsible for road safety and standards) announced that from some point next year, learner drivers will be allowed to drive on Motorways.

In the plans, they will be allowed on Motorways under the supervision of an Approved Driving Instructor (ADI).

It will not be a complusory part of learning to drive, as many people have no Motorways nearby, but Instructors will have the option of including it in the normal driving lessons.

The aim is to reduce the number of young people killed, and seriously injured on the UK’s Motorways.

This is the latest in recent changes including removing test routes from the DSA website, and keeping the theory test question bank secret.

When I know more, I’ll post it here…

Rob Laird
RPL Driving
Driving Lessons In Romford 

Posted in driving law, driving news, learner driver news | Tagged driver, instructor, learner, mike, motorway, penning | Comments Off

We’re looking for a new Driving Instructor…

Posted on 21 November, 2011 by rpldriving

After much consideration, I’ve decided we can take on another Driving Instructor with RPL Driving.

I you work in or near to an area we cover, and are interested in a low-cost franchise, get in touch through the RPL Driving School website.

Rob Laird
RPL Driving

Posted in driving news, RPL Driving news | Tagged adi, driving, essex, instructor, rpl | Comments Off

Driving With Donna – Lessons In Nuneaton

Posted on 13 October, 2011 by rpldriving

A little recommendation for Donna Green who runs Driving With Donna. She provides driving lessons in Nuneaton in a Citroen C3.

So if you are looking for a Driving Instructor in Bedworth, or a nearby area, give her a call or visit www.drivingwithdonna.co.uk

Rob Laird
RPL Driving

Posted in driving advice, driving news, other topics | Tagged bedworth, driving, instructor, lessons, nuneaton, school | Comments Off

RPL Driving Now Has A Mobile Website

Posted on 7 October, 2011 by rpldriving

With more and more people using their mobile phones to browse the internet, I decided to build a simple mobile website for the driving school.

This means, instead of having to view the entire site on a small screen, you get diverted to a basic, cut down version which has a good amount of information on the driving lessons. If you need more, than just simply click on the link to the full site.

If you would like to test it out, use your phone to go to the main RPL Driving Site and (hopefully!) you will get directed to the RPL Driving Mobile Site.

Any problems, please let me know.

Rob Laird
RPL Driving
Driving School In Brentwood

Posted in other topics, RPL Driving news, Twitter | Tagged driving, mobile, new, phone, rpl, website | Comments Off