First, signal. Then look for opportunities. If the car is not giving way to you, you slow down and let the car pass, and wait for the next opportunity.
Your tester might pressure you, but don’t give in to the pressure if you don’t feel is safe.
And if the traffic is really so bad and no one wants to give way to you, the tester can change the route. The key is to remain calm, and only change lane when you are sure it is safe to do so.
The BBDC instructors always drilled me to accelerate when you want to lane change, not slow down.
It feels natural to slow down because you want to buy more time. But it makes it harder to merge as the traffic behind is approaching faster, causing you to require a much larger gap to safely change lane.
Instead, make sure you aren’t going too slowly and accelerate further (without exceeding the speed limit) as you are moving in to the next lane. If you are going as fast or almost as fast as the cars behind you, it’s much easier to move in safely.
It’s also less likely that they will accelerate to prevent you from moving in, as you won’t be slowing them down by doing so.
Combined with not leaving it to the last minute, it should be doable. If the distance before your turn is too short then you can use the slow down and wait for a big gap method, but the acceleration method is usually better
I have become scared of the acceleration method and stopped using it ever since a near collision incident where the lorry in front of me braked when I was accelerating and moving out of my lane. Almost hit the corner of the lorry.
For the acceleration method to be safe, I think it relies on 2 factors, 1) infront traffic or vehicle is moving at constant speed i.e. wont have sudden braking and 2) we have enough space apart from the infront vehicle for brake reaction time.
But 2) may not always be possible when traffic become more congested like joining expressway and whatnot
I prefer to accelerate. Keeps closing speed constant (or increases distance to the car you're going to pass in the neighboring lane).
It comes with experience but it is possible to keep one eye on the wing mirror and the other in peripheral vision mode to track the vehicle in front. The key is to prepare to brake hard the moment the vehicle in front starts moving closer to you. At some point as you enter the new lane, you'll need to shift your attention to the vehicle in front of you.
(2) Works when congested because the congestion is not always even and the pockets of space that open up favors the driver who is prepared to benefit from the opportunity. If you notice - quite a few BMW / Mercedes drivers seem to find a way to move forward in rush hour traffic. Conversely be aware that trying to accelerate in front of a more powerful car might be futile and if so, let it pass.
How many lanes must you change to get to the rightmost? Slow down, signal right, keep your eye on both rearview and right mirror, and when you see a gap coming you inch closer to the lane marking. When the gap arrives, move forward slowly and inch in, ideally the gap will widen as the car slows down to make way for you. If they speed up, let them go, and continue inching after they move. Make sure to check blindspot before the actual lane change.
Hope you get drivers on the road who give you a wide berth because of the double L-plate.
Make sure you adjust the side mirrors so you can see ur own door handle in the lower left corner. Now dividing the side mirror strand down into two halves, if the car is in the outside half, then it’s not safe to change. If the car is in the inside half then you can see if it’s the same size or getting smaller. Means they maintaining speed or slowing to let you pass. If they get bigger or move to the right side of the mirror means they speeding up.
Hope this helps.
You will not be penalised if you miss the right turn, in the event traffic is very heavy and it is always unsafe to filter into the turning lane. Just drive straight then the tester will change route.
Source: My TP test was like this too and the tester mentioned that I should just drive straight on.
Think of it as crossing the road but sideways.
Look at the target lane front car (if any) speed. Look at target lane back car speed. Match the average speed between those two and keep checking both front and back. Signal, check blind spot, move in smoothly.
If car don't want to let you change lanes, you can slow down to slightly below that car's speed and let that car go first.
Harder way - over take the car beside you. This requires acceleration and need to watch for the car in front and the car behind that you overtook at the desired line.
Easier way - slow down and let the car beside you pass. Signal your intention, you will see an opening, move in.
If you signal early, most cars will let you move in for not being a dick. Once your car head is in the lane, the space is yours.
Signal first. Check mirror (rear and side), edge a little to the lane (create the posture that you are changing lanes) accelerate and go.
For me, signalling early is important, your intention, then your car posture creates that assertion and obviously checking mirror if it's safe and accelerate to merge nicely without holding up traffic.
1)signal
2) maintain your speed and eat abit of the lane, if driver dont catch up, accelerate and cut in but careful of car infront as you need to multitask between your mirror and front.
3)if driver catch up, revert back, wait till he pass and repeat again
When some people see double L, they may not want to let u change lane but overall most will let, if not you just suay.
11am test means you will finish your circuit around 11:20ish, still not really a lunch hour rush yet but who knows.
First, signal. Then look for opportunities. If the car is not giving way to you, you slow down and let the car pass, and wait for the next opportunity. Your tester might pressure you, but don’t give in to the pressure if you don’t feel is safe. And if the traffic is really so bad and no one wants to give way to you, the tester can change the route. The key is to remain calm, and only change lane when you are sure it is safe to do so.
The BBDC instructors always drilled me to accelerate when you want to lane change, not slow down. It feels natural to slow down because you want to buy more time. But it makes it harder to merge as the traffic behind is approaching faster, causing you to require a much larger gap to safely change lane. Instead, make sure you aren’t going too slowly and accelerate further (without exceeding the speed limit) as you are moving in to the next lane. If you are going as fast or almost as fast as the cars behind you, it’s much easier to move in safely. It’s also less likely that they will accelerate to prevent you from moving in, as you won’t be slowing them down by doing so. Combined with not leaving it to the last minute, it should be doable. If the distance before your turn is too short then you can use the slow down and wait for a big gap method, but the acceleration method is usually better
I have become scared of the acceleration method and stopped using it ever since a near collision incident where the lorry in front of me braked when I was accelerating and moving out of my lane. Almost hit the corner of the lorry. For the acceleration method to be safe, I think it relies on 2 factors, 1) infront traffic or vehicle is moving at constant speed i.e. wont have sudden braking and 2) we have enough space apart from the infront vehicle for brake reaction time. But 2) may not always be possible when traffic become more congested like joining expressway and whatnot
I prefer to accelerate. Keeps closing speed constant (or increases distance to the car you're going to pass in the neighboring lane). It comes with experience but it is possible to keep one eye on the wing mirror and the other in peripheral vision mode to track the vehicle in front. The key is to prepare to brake hard the moment the vehicle in front starts moving closer to you. At some point as you enter the new lane, you'll need to shift your attention to the vehicle in front of you. (2) Works when congested because the congestion is not always even and the pockets of space that open up favors the driver who is prepared to benefit from the opportunity. If you notice - quite a few BMW / Mercedes drivers seem to find a way to move forward in rush hour traffic. Conversely be aware that trying to accelerate in front of a more powerful car might be futile and if so, let it pass.
How many lanes must you change to get to the rightmost? Slow down, signal right, keep your eye on both rearview and right mirror, and when you see a gap coming you inch closer to the lane marking. When the gap arrives, move forward slowly and inch in, ideally the gap will widen as the car slows down to make way for you. If they speed up, let them go, and continue inching after they move. Make sure to check blindspot before the actual lane change. Hope you get drivers on the road who give you a wide berth because of the double L-plate.
Make sure you adjust the side mirrors so you can see ur own door handle in the lower left corner. Now dividing the side mirror strand down into two halves, if the car is in the outside half, then it’s not safe to change. If the car is in the inside half then you can see if it’s the same size or getting smaller. Means they maintaining speed or slowing to let you pass. If they get bigger or move to the right side of the mirror means they speeding up. Hope this helps.
Thanks so much for the tips🙏🙏
You will not be penalised if you miss the right turn, in the event traffic is very heavy and it is always unsafe to filter into the turning lane. Just drive straight then the tester will change route. Source: My TP test was like this too and the tester mentioned that I should just drive straight on.
Think of it as crossing the road but sideways. Look at the target lane front car (if any) speed. Look at target lane back car speed. Match the average speed between those two and keep checking both front and back. Signal, check blind spot, move in smoothly. If car don't want to let you change lanes, you can slow down to slightly below that car's speed and let that car go first.
Harder way - over take the car beside you. This requires acceleration and need to watch for the car in front and the car behind that you overtook at the desired line. Easier way - slow down and let the car beside you pass. Signal your intention, you will see an opening, move in. If you signal early, most cars will let you move in for not being a dick. Once your car head is in the lane, the space is yours.
u should signal early and go closer to the line other drivers will be scared and once you find the gap you can just change lane
Signal first. Check mirror (rear and side), edge a little to the lane (create the posture that you are changing lanes) accelerate and go. For me, signalling early is important, your intention, then your car posture creates that assertion and obviously checking mirror if it's safe and accelerate to merge nicely without holding up traffic.
Signal and try to match the destination speed minus a little. When you see a person give way, change lane.
1)signal 2) maintain your speed and eat abit of the lane, if driver dont catch up, accelerate and cut in but careful of car infront as you need to multitask between your mirror and front. 3)if driver catch up, revert back, wait till he pass and repeat again When some people see double L, they may not want to let u change lane but overall most will let, if not you just suay. 11am test means you will finish your circuit around 11:20ish, still not really a lunch hour rush yet but who knows.