Learner drivers will be able to reduce their number of supervised hours behind the wheel with new courses announced by the ACT government.
The vulnerable road user program is available for all learners and focuses on safely sharing the road with cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians. Successfully completing this course counts as 10 required driving hours.
The safer driver course focuses on driving behaviour and comprises an in-class lesson and a practical driving component designed to take two learners per vehicle. Completing this course counts as 20 required driving hours.
Under current requirements in the ACT, all learner drivers under 25 have to complete 100 supervised hours behind the wheel before qualifying for a provisional driver's licence.
Taking lessons from a qualified driver trainer provides a multiplier effect in racking up supervised hours, but that bonus is capped at 10 hours.
Learners who pay for 10 hours of training with a qualified driver trainer are credited with 30 hours. The bonus finishes at that point, and hourly driving credits then revert to one-for-one.
One highly experienced ACT driver trainer who didn't want to be named said that while in-class lessons were valuable, it made no sense for the bonus hours with a qualified trainer to top out so quickly.
"Learning to drive is all about building driver awareness, experience and knowledge," he said.
"Qualified driver trainers are best placed to do that. What we find is that learners come to us and learn a lot in their 10 hours with us.
"But then it usually falls back on their parents or an older brother or sister to do the rest of the required log book hours with the learner.
"And no disrespect intended to the families but is that really the best outcome? Surely any additional hours with someone who is qualified to train should be seen as a bonus."
Recent national research of young Australian drivers aged between 16 to 17 by the Australian Institute of Family Studies found that 8 in 10 P-platers and more than half of learner drivers had engaged in some form of risky driving during their 10 most recent driving trips.
The institute's director, Anne Hollonds, said speeding, driving while tired, and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs were among the most common risk factors for young drivers.
"Lifestyle factors, like having a job, were associated with drowsy driving with many young people juggling work, study and other commitments to get to and from work or to socialise," Ms Hollonds said.
The study found that risky driving is also a learned behaviour among teenage drivers.
"Teens who had been a passenger of a driver under the influence were much more likely to drive under the influence themselves, showing that the attitudes and behaviours of parents and friends can have a strong influence on young people's driving behaviour," she said.
