It's my view that driver training in Australia has never been good enough , particularly in the area of being aware of you surroundings .
I reckon we should have the initial system we have and then an advanced refresher once you have a little bit of real world experience .
I have always thought that going for a ride in a heavy vehicle should be a compulsory part of getting a licence . To be fair if someone has never had experience with a heavy vehicle they probably don't appreciate the effect they have when they cut in front of them or slow them down , let alone the potential risk to themselves .
On top of that , the Australian attitude to owning the road is a major part of the problem . As annoying as the 90kmh driver is ( and I fully agree on the frustration factor
) it is just not worth getting worked up about .
Try the experiment yourself . You finally get past one of these drivers only to find that they catch you at the next set of lights , even kilometres away . That tells me that the extra speed that you carry might only mean 30 seconds at the other end . Hardly worth getting steamed up and have it spoil the rest of your day . I say this because I used to let these circumstances wind me up . I found that I was angry for the rest of the day , even after I stopped driving . Now I just kick back and wait . It's amazing the difference it's made to my stress levels .
And , I don't feel that I'm penalised if I get somewhere a minute or two later .
I reckon stress on the road is a serious and unmeasured condition that contributes significantly to problems on the road . There's plenty of road rage going on . You never hear of people getting booked for driving slowly in the right lane or driving like a tool in traffic and yet every time you go driving you can see evidence of it . Something should be done about it .
Why isn't there a constant advertising campaign about good driving skills and awareness ? Surely a regular education campaign over a decade or so with examples such as cutting off heavy vehicles could eventually have a positive effect ?
