A well-designed driver education system is an important tool in increasing the likelihood that young drivers will, in fact, obey existing traffic rules and drive as safely as possible. Society thus has a responsibility to provide the best possible driver education system. This preliminary study has surveyed the driver education systems in Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the UK with a view to comparing them with the existing Swedish system in order to obtain ideas for possible changes. The survey took place via study visits to representatives of the various countries. The study shows that there are large differences in how the driver education systems of these countries are designed and that the systems have not been adequately evaluated, which makes it difficult to express a view on their potential impact on road safety. Nevertheless, the Road Traffic Inspectorate considers that they contain good examples that make them of interest for further investigation to enable improvements to be made so as to the impact on the road safety aspect of the Swedish system. This is true, for example, of a requirement for all learner drivers to attend a course in road safety before being allowed to start their driving licence training as well as training requirements for private supervisors. It is also important to ensure that learners have an adequate amount of driving experience during their period of education. The possibility of practising driving for at least two years before taking the driving test is judged to be positive as it gives the learner an opportunity to acquire this experience. Where private driving practice is concerned, there is scope for introducing a requirement for feedback meetings between pupil, private supervisor and an instructor from a driving school and for specifying a minimum amount of practice. It is worth taking note of the opportunities that a graduated driver education system can give. This provides the conditions for training to be assimilated by the learner in as correct and structured form as possible by means of interaction between private driving practice and compulsory educational components. The introduction of compulsory educational elements could, for example, entail stipulating a minimum number of theoretical and practical lessons from professional instructors, which would more effectively ensure a minimum level of knowledge on the part of newly licensed drivers. There is also a possibility of quality-assuring certain objectives in a national curriculum via compulsory educational elements instead of through a driving test. With regard to the driving test, one could also envisage the introduction of a risk awareness test to complement the present theoretical and practical tests. It is also worth observing that all of the countries surveyed have chosen to introduce a penalty points system linked to the probationary period. It is also clear that there are gaps in educational requirements among the players who operate in the driver education system and also when it comes to the supervision of the activities of these players, which will also be examined further. In the light of what has emerged in the preliminary study, the Road Traffic Inspectorate will intensify its work on the Swedish driver education system in 2008 in order to examine further how the existing system could be improved. This work will be based on a holistic approach, where all the component parts should form a coherent whole so that together they can ensure that the goals of the curriculum are met, and will take advantage of the fact that in Sweden we have available to us at least four years for measures linked to the driver education system — during driver training between the ages of 16 and 18 and during a two-year probationary period after this. (Author/publisher)
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