Driving Poll

[clauds26]

Hi everyone..
just found this website.. it is brilliant to have people writing what I've been thinking for years!!

I passed my driving test when I was 17- (im 22 now) I hadt oget my doctor to sign a form to say I was ok, and think I was just lucky with readign the number plate.

Although my Guernsey liscence allows me to drive in England too, I haven't tried and dont think I ever will... Guernsey speed limit is 35mph island wide!! and we have no motorways... I agree with Claireh... the very thought of driving on a motorway scares the hell out of me!! I guess I'm luck to be able to drive over here, altyhough I know what you mean about night time... I find it much harder... generallly I avoid driving at nightt cos i just dont feeel veery safe.

Clauds26

[Boneist]

Well, I finally drove on motorways and dual carriageways on my own the other day... 3 hours of driving (with only one break each way, but plenty of sleep before!!), and it was surprisingly ok!

What I found I had problems with was staying in the middle of the lane - I kept drifting over to the right, for some reason.

Has anyone else experienced this? Any tips on how to a) combat it and b) work out where the middle of the lane is?

[Angela]

I'd say you just need practise with the lane position thing.
So long as you can keep between the lines you'll be fine.
Well done!

I just concentrate on the drivers side lane lines on the right and look ahead as far as possible. Even ordinary drivers have a problem with drifting. You'll learn how to get over this. Driving at speed is so liberating. I used to drive motorbikes when I was young, now that's a way to travel.

Other reasons are.............
Sometimes this drift can be just down to the camber (slope) of the road pulling the car across. You just notice it more at speed on motorways as the bends in the road are often longer and sweeping. Its surprising how little of a motorway is actually straight and level.

Also it could be the car if the brakes are binding slightly but I doubt it is this or you'd notice it at all speeds.

I hope this helps.

[Boneist]

Yes, it does thanks... I hadn't considered that there might be something on the car itself pulling to the right... I don't think it's this, but worth checking out.

I'm going to get my brother (the mechanic) to look at the car in 3 weeks anyway, to give it a once-over, so will ask him to be on the lookout for anything that might cause drifting.

I think I definitely need more practise, though! *grins*

[Angela]

Glad to help.
Practice makes perfect right?
Have fun.

[Boneist]

Am happy to report that practice is making perfect... I'm much better now at guaging the middle of the lane (although I still wobble around within the lane!), and I'm not having to constantly make fine adjustments to the wheel.

I have discovered that I have definite issues with concentrating on the road ahead at night, where the road isn't lit. Maybe this too will come with practice, but for now, I have to say I don't enjoy driving at night on dark roads!

I was very tense the last two times I had to do this... achey shoulders afterwards!!

[Angela]

Driving at night is a problem for sure.
Glad to here you're making progress driving though Boneist..
I don't like those new rear cars lights that flicker either. Or the new bus front displays, I know they save on energy but give me an old fastioned bulb anyday. LED displays suck big time when you have Nystagmus don't they?

[Danielle]

Well here in Australia the eyesight component of getting your licence appears to run on a kind of honour system. The website for the transport centre for my area states that IF you declare on your application that you have a medical condition that may impair your ability to drive then you will have to have a medical certificate filled out by a doctor. I will have to confirm with my younger brothers, but I am pretty certain that since they had no visual imperfections to declare on their form, they did not have to go away and sit for an eye test. I guess in a way they figure that if you lie about it, your driving instructor would pick up on it soon enough, or in the least you would fail the practical. Who knows.

On a personal note, my sight without my lenses was good enough to pass the minimum requirements so I don't have a special annotation on my licence mandating me to wear my glasses (though I wouldn't dream of driving without them, my God!). I'm glad I am not the only one with 'difficulty' driving at night. I find it's mainly my depth-perception that is affected... making me wary against driving in heavy traffic in the dead of night, because I can't get an accurate gauge on how far away the oncoming traffic and traffic behind/alongside me are. I can see perfectly well how far ahead the car in front of me is though; and a little extra caution otherwise doesn't hurt. I also have to pay extra close attention when parking, because it's hard to see how far away the other cars are. If I am turning into a space that has two empty spaces alongside it I slide in perfectly every time, and yet if I am parking between two cars I frequently have to back up and adjust so that I am an equal distance from both cars. Go figure. Four years though and I've never had an accident... touch wood (preferably not while it's still a tree and I'm in my car...)
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[Angela]

Its funny you should mention parking. I've always found it easier to reverse park between 2 cars, just shows we are all different.

I'm getting frustrated now I'm not able to drive much, having that freedom taken away is depressing. It isn't just my eye sight at fault though, its the rest of me that is falling apart too.

Does anyone else when looking at a distance have times when they feel like they are going cross eyed? I surposed its double vision of sorts. I know some nystagmus sufferers do get double vision.

[Boneist]

Angela> those LED traffic lights are the ones that get me the most... they flicker so much, I can't bear to look at them for long!! Does my head in!

Danielle> I find it much easier to reverse park if there are two cars either side... I find it's easier to see them than the lines, in my wing mirrors!

*grins*

[noel_ambrose]

i passed my drivers license by fluke, my doctor passed me,
I grased the 20/50 line, which is the requirements in Ontario, Canada.

However 3months later, i applied for a motorcycle license and did not pass the test, even with the doc.

I feel really sh*ty about it. but i guess its better than nothing.
I have no problem driving or have any problems in school or university.
i simply move to the front of the class.

i like to think of my self as NOT foolish, and i wouldnt drive if it wasnt safe for me to do so, but thats just the thing, i feel fine, i have no problem driving a car, and at any speed (in all due sincerety).

I also have Albinism, but thats another strange thing cos. i cant see how it has effected me.Yes, i am a little fairer than the rest of the family but my grandma was fairer than me, she had no eye problems,

i am very photosensitive, but thats about it.

i could have cheated on the vision test at the ministy, but i chose not to.

i feels good to know there are others like me.,(deep sigh)

[ptribe]

I passed my driving test last week after years of deciding whether or not to go for it (I am 36 years old!). I have congenital nystagmus and my visual acuity is 6/9 in both eyes which isn't that bad also my peripheral vision is OK. Although this is the case I was still extremely nervous about the number plate test because they obviously don't depict proper "words" but a mix of numbers and letters, which makes things more difficult. It's easy to get a Y mixed up with a V whereas with a proper word (e.g. on a sign post), you can compensate for it. Also I have to say I was absolutely terrified of the eye test on the day(s), more than the driving itself, and nerves/stress increases the effects of nystagmus.

I am taking part in a genetics study at the University of Leicester, which involves various eye tests and ultimately, in my case, going on a course of medication. The effects are closely monitored to see if my vision improves. I believe the medication helps slow down the involuntary eye movements caused by nystagmus. I am very pleased with all the help and encouragement the staff there have given me including the confidence to go and do something that all us nystagmus sufferers think about. My vision has improved enough to get me in a car. As my nystagmus is not that bad the effects are not that great but I beleive the effects increase on patients with poorer vision. I am also very keen to find out what causes the dis-order. (If anybody is interested they are still recruiting).

My advice to any nystagmus sufferer who is considering learning to drive in the UK is simply to test your vision (many times), and if you can read a number plate from the legal distance (20M for new style number plates, 20.5M for older ones), then go for it. Also, I passed my test in an automatic car as I wanted to have less to concentrate on and feel this helped allot. Furthermore, bear in mind that when you take the eye test you get three attempts, and on the 3rd they measure out the exact distance, which happened to me on my last test (I took 3). I explained to the DSA prior to the 2nd & 3rd tests that I have Nystagmus and how nerves affect my vision, they were very understanding and gave me extra time to calm down and read the plate. I knew I could do it as I had read "loads" of home made plates in my back garden (I even managed to find and download the correct font to do this, which you use in MS Word!), but the nerves were still very difficult to overcome on the day.

On a final note practice loads and know the test area, just like any learner driver would do. My instructor did used to say I was hesitant (which you can get faulted on) but now I have passed I can be as hesitant as I want as I just want to be safe! It's ironic but I know I will be safer than most idiots on the road.

[FLUFF]

I was a amazed at the people who can drive that have nystagmus. I can't drive I only see the number plate twenty-three feet.

[notstevieray]

I just went for mine and was knocked back by the Cheif Medical Officer of the Roads and Traffic Authority on the strength of my doctor's letter. 6/12 is the minimum, and I am 6/24 even after muscle surgery.

You have no idea what it's like to be a car nut and not be able to drive! but I'm learning to deal with it.