Skip to main content

Safer roads for the UK with tougher tests?

The UK’s driving test has been made far tougher in recent times, in a bid to boost safety. Some people take up to 21 attempts to pass their practical test, according to data from the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). The information covers every year between 2009 and 2018. In 2016, one driver passed at the 21st attempt in one year. Another driver took 19 attempts to pass in 2018. Meanwhile one learner failed 19 tests in 2009, 2015 and 2017. The car driving test pass rate was 45.8% for the 2018/
July 24, 2019 Read time: 1 min

The UK’s driving test has been made far tougher in recent times, in a bid to boost safety. Some people take up to 21 attempts to pass their practical test, according to data from the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). The information covers every year between 2009 and 2018.

In 2016, one driver passed at the 21st attempt in one year. Another driver took 19 attempts to pass in 2018. Meanwhile one learner failed 19 tests in 2009, 2015 and 2017.

The car driving test pass rate was 45.8% for the 2018/19 period. This was the lowest figure since 45.3% for the 2008/9 period. In all 18,922 learners passed the practical test with zero faults for the 2018/19 period. This was an improvement over 18,410 for the 2017/18 period.

Related Content

  • Europe’s road safety improved for 2019
    June 22, 2020
    New data shows that Europe’s road safety improved in 2019.
  • US pedestrian deaths fall but remain high
    June 27, 2024
    According to analysis from the Governors Highway Safety Association - GHSA – annual US pedestrian traffic deaths fell for first time since the pandemic, but are still above the pre-pandemic level.
  • Saudi Arabia has to tackle road safety to reduce current accident levels
    November 15, 2012
    Saudi Arabia is suffering from poor road safety, despite continuing investment in infrastructure. The country’s road crash rate is very high, accounting for up to 19 deaths/day on average. The data shows that Saudi Arabia’s road network one of the most dangerous in the world. The Government of Saudi Arabia has introduced various policies to address the problem and enforcement has become much tougher. Although congestion is being addressed with the construction of new links and the implementation of ITS tech
  • Europe’s road safety picture slanted wrong way?
    May 24, 2016
    The European Commission’s latest figures for road safety reveal some cause for concern across the EU. While the EU has the world’s safest roads overall, the road fatality rate has slipped during 2015. And this is for the second consecutive year also as EU road deaths in 2014 also showed an increase over 2013. By comparison, there were decreases in the European road death rate of 8% in 2012 and 2013.