Tips For Nervous Drivers
How To Become A More Confident Driver
Do you start to feel nervous even at the thought of driving? Do you want to learn more about safe driving and pass your driving test, but you’re nervous and lack confidence behind the wheel? Here are a few tips that you can use to become less nervous while learning to drive!
1. Start In Parking Lots & On Rural, Low Speed-Limit Roads
The last thing you should do as a nervous driver is try to drive through heavy traffic in urban areas during rush hour if you only have a few hours of driving experience.
You should feel comfortable when learning to drive, which means you should start in places where there is little-to-no-risk of an accident. An empty parking lot, such as a school parking lot after-hours, is a great place to get familiar with your car and learn how to drive.
Once you feel comfortable in a parking lot, you can move to rural, low speed limit roads. Look for 40 km/h or 50 km/h zones that do not have much traffic. You can become more comfortable driving on public roads without worrying about other drivers, which will ensure you don’t feel anxious while driving.
2. Avoid Inclement Weather Conditions (At First)
Rain, fog and other poor weather conditions can be dangerous for learner drivers. When you’re first learning to drive, it’s best to avoid them. You will need to drive in them eventually – but it’s best to do so once you are less anxious, and have a good understanding of the fundamentals of driving.
3. Limit How Much You Drive At Once & Progress Slowly
If you feel comfortable driving for 15 minutes, you should drive for only 15 minutes. Over time, you may feel comfortable driving for 20 minutes at a time. Then 30 minutes, 45 minutes… and so on. The stress of driving can be immense if you’re a new driver, so make sure you’re not overdoing it.
4. Knowledge Is Power – Educate Yourself!
Studying driving instruction guides and taking drive lessons with a driving instructor can be very helpful if you’re a new driver – even if you’ve passed your test and gotten your P licence already.
Whether you’re a provisional driver or learner driver, you can always learn more about safe driving – and this can enhance your confidence. For example, learning about blind spots and how to check them properly will make you less nervous when overtaking or dealing with heavy traffic – because you’ll know exactly what to do!
5. Know When To Move Out Of Your Comfort Zone
It’s important to feel comfortable when driving – but also to know when to push yourself and do something new. For example, driving on an urban street for the first time, or driving at night in the rain.
As you become a better and more experienced driver, you’ll naturally feel more comfortable moving out of your comfort zone. Don’t fall into the trap of doing just what’s comfortable. Remember, you’ll face a huge variety of circumstances and situations as a driver throughout your life – and you need to prepare for them.
Follow These Tips – Become More Comfortable While Driving!
Take things slow, give yourself time to learn, and make sure you work with professional instructors at LTrent Driving School to educate yourself about the basics of driving safely. If you do, you’ll feel more comfortable – and less nervous – behind the wheel! Contact us now, and learn more about our lesson packages or if you’re in NSW, the Safer Drivers Course provides learner drivers in class and car coaching sessions. Call 02 8748 4500 for NSW or 1300 717 115 for Melbourne or book your lessons online.