Driving lessons resume on April 12th

Hopefully this latest lockdown will be the last we have to endure and it's been by far the worst for so many.  Driving lessons resume on April 12th, but the devastation created for the learner driver industry from the latest Covid whirlwind is on a new level.  Almost 500,000 cancelled and rescheduled tests, that's twice the number of lockdown 1.  Waiting lists at every driving school nation wide are longer than ever been seen before.  A new learner could have to wait over a year before space pops up to start learning how to drive. 

Then there is the matter of driving tests.  It's estimated the wait is over 8 months on average everywhere in England.  How can driving instructors (and learners to a degree) plan for this size gap?  Currently there are no tests available anywhere in Bristol.  That's pretty bleak for anyone learning wishing to actually qualify. 

Solutions or just more problems?

Test centres are disappearing.  Bristol has lost two in the past few years, pushing up waiting times further.   On top of that, just today we found out Bristol is closing it's theory test centre without another one to fill it's space until mid-May.  Could this have been planned any worse?  Three days before apparently resuming, they're cancelling another months worth of tests.  Inconceivable!

The DVSA has stated that they'll open test centres with a reduced number of tests per day, however, you'll be able to book tests (when available) on Saturdays.  At a higher price I must add.  They have recruited more staff, which is good.  But they have less test centres to man... I must be missing a crucial part of the logic here.  I think it's obvious more needs to be done.  Fingers crossed it's sooner rather than later.

What we're doing

As a driving school, we can not sort out the driving test mess.  We can only teach and try to navigate and advise our students as best we can through the continuously changing environment.

But how can driving lessons take place in a Covid-19 world?

It's all about the PPE

Social distancing isn't possible during a driving lesson. In my Fiat 500, students and I have around a 50cm gap, shoulder to shoulder. Covid doesn't look like it's going anywhere anytime soon, so we're going to have learn how to live with it. This is why social distancing for lessons has to be ignored and PPE is king.  Here's what we are continuing to do in terms of keeping our clients as safe as possible over the coming months until the world returns to normal.

• Please wash your hands with soap and water just before your driving lesson.
• Have some kind of face covering. No mask, no lesson.
• We will call/text you when we're ready outside. Coming up to your house and knocking, chatting with family members increases the risk of transmission, so for the time being, please be ready for a call/text and come on down when it's time.
• You'll enter a car that has been fully sprayed down with antiseptic aerosol from it's last class. External door handles too.
• If you're able to bring a pair of your own, clean rubber gloves, great. If you don't have any, they will be provided for you at a rate of 50p per pair. Gloves (in my car) are also mandatory.  Some schools will be happy with hand sanitiser.
• Speaking face to face needs to be kept to a minimum.
• Windows down as much as possible to keep the environment fresh and air circulating.
• At the end of the class please dispose of your gloves responsibly and wash your mask before using it again.
• We recommend changing your clothes as soon as you get back inside your home.
• My day will be split into two. Two hours of teaching in the morning, then two hours in the afternoon. This gives me a chance to deep clean the car in the middle of the day, eat at home and change my clothing.

Joint responsibility

Just in the same way the student and instructor have a joint responsibility in the car when on a lesson, the same now applies before classes. If you're not feeling well (in the slightest), if you've been near someone who has Covid-19, or potentially has Corona, then please cancel your lesson. Anyone infected getting in a vehicle with someone else for 60 to 120 minutes is transmitting that disease. No matter how much PPE they have on. Be kind, be responsible, be safe.