The Sun newspaper’s motoring editor confessed he wasn’t looking forward to attending a speed awareness course – but in the event admitted that he learnt more than he thought he would.
Ken Gibson, who says he drives 120,000 miles a year, attended a course in Herefordshire run by the TTC Group, after being caught driving at 35mph in a 30mph limit.
Writing in the Sun on 21 March, Ken Gibson said: “If I’m honest, I was not looking forward to more than four hours sitting in a classroom being reminded I was a speeder. And I don’t think many there were thinking of it being a valuable safety experience.
“It is easy to say stop speeding but not quite as easy to achieve this in the hustle and bustle of life. The official answer is COAST, the letters standing for Concentration, Observation, Anticipation, Space and Time. After seeing some slides this made total sense.
“You also learn about having more peripheral awareness about the road ahead instead of seeing no further than the first vehicle in front of you.
“I’m happy to concede that I learned more than I thought I would.”
Click here to read the full TTC Group news release.
TTC Group
Established in the early 1990s, the TTC Group (UK) is the largest provider of courses for the National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme (NDORS), an educational alternative to prosecution for some road traffic offences. TTC Group educates more than 250,000 motorists, motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians each year with the aim of reducing road casualties.
Photo courtesy of The Sun
After 55 years and 1m miles plus, I am always keen to learn and improve and I am sure very many others would say the same. Millions of people take part in sports, competitions etc. trying to become better at them, why would driving be any different? What we have now is conscription by means of what is close to a random reverse lottery, but with criminal offence overtones. Why not just a lottery?
Idris Francis Fight Back With Facts Petersfield
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Good point from Idris, unfortunately, most drivers think themselves to be ‘above average’ and do not think they need to go on such a course voluntarily, although I’m sure they think everyone else should!
It’s a shame that those who do go, only do so relucatntly because of circumstances.
Mind you, no reason why people can’t self-improve if the interest and motivation is there.
Hugh Jones, Cheshire
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There is probably not a driver in the world who can’t say that they [a] were not thinking that they would learn anything new and [b] who never thought that they would have learned something new from such courses. However a lot depends on whether they will put into practise and continue driving with that new knowledge fixed in their minds.
bob craven Lancs
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Courses may or may not improve drivers, but if they do, why offer them only to drivers caught speeding, with all the costs involved in catching them? Why not offer them to all drivers, at much lower costs because the camera costs have been removed from the process?
Idris Francis Fight Back With Facts Petersfield
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