Why can’t people be more understanding of learner drivers?

I have been teaching my son to drive now for a couple of months. It hasn’t been the easiest of jobs. You literally take your life in your hands every time you get into a car with a learner driver during those early weeks and I have the utmost respect for driving instructors, it is a job I couldn’t do (even with dual controls in the car). But, I have to say, that several weeks on from those times when I was clutching onto my seat fearing for my actual life, I am quite relaxed now, apart from the odd moment when I feel like I am going to be acquainted with the side of someone else’s car (I’m not sure if this is due to his driving too close or the fact that I am used to being in the driver’s seat.)

But the one thing it has reminded me of, it how hard it is when you are a learner driver.  My son is usually quite confident in most things, but he has found the experience of learning to drive really stressful. And I mean really stressful. With the roads being constantly busy, even on Sunday afternoons and evenings, learners can quickly feel seriously under pressure. This is not helped by other drivers on the road.

Now I am the first to admit that it can be frustrating when you are driving somewhere and you are maybe running late and you come up behind a learner driver.  I might sigh and roll my eyes but I would never want to put pressure on the driver.  From my experience with my son over the last few weeks, I have found that this is not the case with other drivers and at times it makes me seriously cross.

We have experienced lots of overtaking, which is not a huge issue but it can make learners feel conscious of their speed. I have had to reassure him a lot that it isn’t personal and that he should just take his time.  Statistics show that young male drivers in particular are prone to speeding, so I am trying to encourage my son to not be one of those statistics.

So the overtaking I can tolerate but the tail-gating and beeping I cannot.  Again,  I am trying to encourage my son to take things slowly, to have more control. That is not at all helped by people driving as close to his rear bumper as humanly possible and sounding their horns out of frustration. It just adds more stress to an already stressful situation.

The worst of it, however, is at one particular junction. It is a junction which requires pulling out right across a busy by-pass road. I hate it myself and  often sit there for what feels  like hours, waiting for a space to pull out. It is on the way home from the teen’s work and we do it at least twice a week. Two weekends running, we have sat at the junction waiting patiently for a space to pull out.  It is a really tricky junction and due to the speed  of cars in both directions, it takes a really confident driver to pull out in to smaller  gaps.  Two weekends running, we have had two drivers pull up onto the left of us at the junction and they have pulled out at the same time as us, sounding their horns as they went.  Not only is it completely irresponsible but it is also dangerous. It also knocks my son’s confidence which is really frustrating as  he is actually becoming a really good driver.

We always have L-plates clearly visible, I genuinely don’t understand why people have to be so rude and impatient. We were all learners once and I don’t think it hurts to give learner drivers time, space and a little understanding.  I am clearly in the minority.