Speed Awareness Course Attendees

Well I was caught doing 38 in a 30 on the way to Newport passport office a few months ago.

I took the option of a Speed Awareness Course which I attended today. At 44 I expected to be one of the older ones but to my surprise over half were the wrong side of 55 with half of those being of retirement age.

Not sure if younger drivers just take the points but it surprised me. My town does have a higher than normal proportion of OAPs.

It’s the old ones you have to watch out for! (plus me obviously :oops:)

I would have been surprised at the same, but I recall my mother being in her late 50s on 9 points, and I think of how appalling a driver my FIL is.

44 is the wrong side of 55.

I always seam to come across old people who drive at 40mph in open 60 zones and then 40mph in 30 zones …

Not everyone is offered the courses

Lot of ‘older’ people on the course I attended, and not many ‘young uns’.

Most seemed to be there as their had no clue what the speed limits on various roads actually are. That included a couple of ‘professional’ drivers.

I did the course, I thought it was garbage. I still exceed the limit on empty open roads like the deserted DC where I got caught at 06:00 on Christmas day morning setting off to drive to Wiltshire. But I still drive at 30 or even 25 or less on residential and built up streets.

My late grandfather-in-law was told that he was the oldest person ever caught speeding in Lincolnshire. He was 92.

As an ex-police officer himself, he was half-embarrassed and half massively amused.

TT2000 course for me, offered the choice again i’d take points, total waste of time.
The high light was watching the old boy next to me turn his hearing aids off everytime the one knob tutor started spouting.

I thought it was useful. Maybe the quality of training varies as much as the quality of drivers?

Said on the BBC earlier that there are 4 million drivers over seventy in the UK, I was surprised to find that they only have to declare themselves fit every 3 years to continue driving -basically an honesty system. I wonder what proportion of those 4 million aren’t fit to drive.

Although if a doctor thinks they are unfit, they can have their licence taken from them at any time .

I did the course, I thought it was garbage. I still exceed the limit

= I’m an awesome driver.

I found mine surprisingly painless and a lot cheaper than points

I’ve never been caught = eye examin/prescription upto date. Its not **** rocket science.

Speeding isnt a badge of honour but I do think every driver should face annual eyetest/glasses.

A few weeks ago as I approached the speed camera warning sign on Snake pass a new Merc behind me belted it- the way he left me on the straight…well I reckon he’d have been doing a ton before he drew LEVEL with the camera van before he hit his brakes 😆

You rarely see police speed traps during the morning or evening rush hour so the demographics the OP state make sense.

My mate was hit by an oncoming speeder on another wise deserted open country road . The speeder took a gentle bend a little too wide and peeled the rear door out of his Volvo sending them both off the road.

My speed awareness fought me that no matter how good a driver you are speed exaggerates you mistakes reduces your and other drivers opportunities to react and maximises the damage of an impact.

It also demonstrated how profoundly stupid many habitually speeding drivers are.

Don’t know if it’s an urban myth, but I’ve been told a number of times that they don’t offer it to the yoof. The course I was on the youngest looking was about 30-35.
I thought mine was useful and and learnt a thing or two.

Yep, same experience as most.

Half full of +60’s and only one who looked under 30 – and quite amusing watching them all guess the speed limits.

At the beginning the Instructor asked “why we were there?”, no one wanted to answer. So I put my hand up.

“Because we got caught?”

Knowing the answer he was looking for, was “because we were speeding”.

There was a smug know-it-all on our course too. There was also the one who bored everyone by constantly whining about the injustice of the circumstances of his penalty.

As well as mostly being aimed at the more mature driver they only seem to be given to those who’ve transgressed in a small way. IE less than 10mph over a limit.

I guess the idea is that it’s just designed to focus the attention and bring the target demographic into line. I suspect they’ve also done this for a long time and they don’t like the mouthy hecklers they’re likely to get if they bring in those who regularly flout the law or the under 30s who are less brow beaten by life.

I’ve never been on one (I’ve not yet been caught rather than being a goody 2 shoes), are you allowed to dissent or does that get you a fail?

From my limited experience you do get to dissent but you will get to be asked to justify your position which most of those who dissent can’t actually do. I got criticised by the group and the leaders for pointing out that speeding was a criminal offense .

I think you only fail the course if you turn up late, leave early or hold the tutor/class at gun point.

“I’ve never been on one (I’ve not yet been caught rather than being a goody 2 shoes), are you allowed to dissent or does that get you a fail?”

No, on the TT2000 course there is no discussion, you are there to be punished not to learn. After a chap had argued a 2nd point he was asked if he wanted to leave. If you fail to complete the course you are refered back to the police, points and fine.

I had a clean ticket so i could have taken the point with any further cost. the course was knocking on for 50% more than the fine. So it was touch and go – but I wanted something from the course. I was looking forward to it. I don’t go with a it will be crap attitude. To be honest i can’t beleave that TT2000 can get away with it. 4 hours sat in a room being spouted at. And some of what they came out with was well….. “if there is a cycle lane cyclists must by law use it”

There are other providers, if you get offered one google the provider and see what the net says.

Don’t know if it’s an urban myth, but I’ve been told a number of times that they don’t offer it to the yoof. The course I was on the youngest looking was about 30-35.

They tend not to offer it to new drivers as they have 6 points and you’re sitting your test again period after passing.

It’s the old ones you have to watch out for!

I did one a couple of years back.
I was 20. All were over twice my age, with most in their 50s.

As boxelder said, not everyone is offered.
The explanation I got was that youngsters go hell for leather, and the ones that get the offer of the course are within a certain percentage of the limit. Lapse of “speed awareness”, which tends to be the more experienced drivers.

If you think that’s a weak sweeping generalisation, it’s okay, the feminist running the show was full of ’em 🙄

Did my course yesterday. Thought the two guys presenting were good, but I didn’t learn anything.

I got nabbed doing 46 on a 40mph dual carriageway – empty road and no residential buildings (or anything!) nearby. I’m super slow in built up areas.

Got me out of points on my licence, but didn’t deliver anything else to me. And perhaps it should have – maybe the courses need a redesign. I was talking to one huy who’d done it three years ago and you actually went out in your car with an instructor for two hours to get a real, practicle assessment and advice.

In North Yorkshire they have set limits.

Over the limit by 10% + 2 and you get offered the course.
Up to 10% + 9 when the offer of a course stops.

Younger people are maybe not getting the course offered due to the speeds they get caught at.

Half full of +60’s and only one who looked under 30 – and quite amusing watching them all guess the speed limits.

That to me is a good argument (one of many) for regular re-tests for all drivers.

I regularly see (old) people who quite clearly believe that the speed limit on a NSL dual carriageway is still 50mph. Always amusing to watch them brake for the speed cameras.

And of course the others ones that seem to think two lanes = dual carriageway, who accelerate when the other lane appears then brake at the end.

I found it really interesting – our guys went quite in depth on the relationship between speed and energy, and why the human body doesn’t respond well to being hit by speeding cars (hence all the “at 30mph, 80% of pedestrians hit by a car survive – at 40mph 80% die” stuff).

If you’ve done the course and come away without changing your driving habits, I’d question whether you should be driving.

I found my speed awareness course quite painless and it was certainly better than points on my licence. I came away from it a better driver, certainly a more aware driver anyway.

I did one, at the end you’re given a booklet and asked to complete a sentence with your intentions after the course has finished. I complied with ‘I intend not to speed again ever’ and the chap next to me put ‘I intend to slow down for speed cameras and not get caught again’ – they don’t mark or ask to see the booklet.

I found mine surprisingly painless and a lot cheaper than points

Is that after including the cost of taking time off work? I reckon that at least some of the younger working drivers must reckon the same as I did when I was offered one and figure it’s not worth it on that basis, not when I don’t appear to be penalised in any significant way on my car insurance (provided I keep my nose clean, and only got another couple of months to go now before my last renewal before my current 3 points falls off – already gone in terms of totting up).

And some of what they came out with was well….. “if there is a cycle lane cyclists must by law use it”

Did you complain about that (after the course)? I certainly would.

If you’ve done the course and come away without changing your driving habits, I’d question whether you should be driving.

Really? Doesn’t that depend on how good your driving standard is before going on the course? Maybe it’s those who require such a course in order to learn to drive competently who’s place on the roads should be in question.

Obviously if you were a good driver you would not be speeding and so would not be having the course or points choice.

I was one of the youngest people on my course (I was 29 when I took it).

Obviously if you were a good driver you would not be speeding

Really? You think that the legal speed limit is the ‘safe’ limit on all roads in all conditions and that they don’t differ? Sometimes that ‘safe’ limit is below the legal limit, and at times (and places) it may be above the legal limit. Being a good driver is knowing the difference.

Obviously if you were a good driver you would not be speeding

I always stay within the limit if I’ve had a few….

Sometimes that ‘safe’ limit is below the legal limit,

Yup, so a good driver would dirve at that safe speed and would therefore be driving in a safe and legal manner.

and at times (and places) it may be above the legal limit. Being a good driver is knowing the difference.

A good driver might know the differences but he/she wouldn’t drive above the speed limit and would therefore still be dirving in both a safe and legal manner.

A good driver might know the differences but he/she wouldn’t drive above the speed limit and would therefore still be dirving in both a safe and legal manner.

Oh silly me, of course anyone who ever exceeds the speed limit must automatically be a bad driver 🙄

Oh silly me, of course anyone who ever exceeds the speed limit must automatically be a bad driver

Correct – because they are not thinking about the impact their driving is having on others.