Tips and Blogs

Whether you’re starting your first year at university or heading back for the final time, travelling there can be an emotional rollercoaster. One moment you’re excited at the thought of seeing friends and getting your independence back, then you’re full of nerves and finding it hard to part with those at home. So worrying about your motorway journey is the last thing you need.

Over time our eyesight deteriorates and previously strong vision can become poor. If eyesight problems are left unaddressed they can often lead to poor reaction times to unexpected hazards or the behaviour of other road users. Richard Gladman, IAM RoadSmart’s head of driving and riding standards provides advice on eyesight and driving.

The summer holidays are nearly over. Order and normality will resume along with the dreaded school run which starts again for another year. This week’s tips, provided by IAM RoadSmart’s head of driving and riding standards, Richard Gladman, offer advice on how to survive the term time road rush.

If you’re planning a bank holiday getaway then be sure to read our tips on how you can make your journey a safe and stress-free one. Here’s IAM RoadSmart’s head of driving and riding standards, Richard Gladman, to help you prepare for your trip. Because a little preparation goes a long way.

Stress affects us all at one time or another – whether it’s down to work, home life or a tough situation you’re facing. Stress can affect how we feel physically and emotionally as well as impair our judgement and our reactions, which isn’t good news when we need to concentrate on something significant, like driving.

My last blog entry described my journey since passing my IAM test in 1971. In 2015 I’d had a wake-up call, realising my driving skills had slipped badly, and the subsequent few months had been devoted to recovering and improving – all leading to one thing.

It was something I’d said I would never allow to happen. I’d passed my IAM test in 1971, full of enthusiasm and grand intentions never to let my standards slip. Then someone pushed the fast-forward button while I slept and, like a latter-day Rip Van Winkle, I woke in 2015 in a very different world where driving was not fun but a stressful chore.

There’s something extremely bland about turning 37. With the much-celebrated big 4-0 still well beyond the horizon, 37 is a beige age, possessing only the dubious honour of being ‘the beginning of your late 30's.’

Government announcements – don’t you just love them? Well, yes and no. Yes, in that they bring IAM RoadSmart loads of media coverage, and no, because the latest came out at 10.30 on a Saturday evening – not easy to plan for! The latest was an important announcement about the long touted idea of allowing learners on motorways. We had already supported the concept in a consultation reply many months ago and it was good to see the government adopting all the recommendations we liked.

I started motorcycling when I was 14, back in the ‘60s! Not on the road, but on our private farm lane and in the fields. With a group of friends I bought and sold British bikes for £5-£15 … those same bikes would be worth thousands today!