Driving test changes on the way

* 'Independent' driving included from October 4 * Ten minutes of driving with less direction * One less reversing manoeuvre to do...

Driving test changes on the way

The driving test will undergo a couple of changes from October 4 and will include a new 'independent' driving assessment.

Rather than examiners giving step-by-step instructions on where to go throughout the test, there will now be a 10-minute period in which candidates will have to follow traffic signs, a short series of verbal instructions or a combination of the two.

Road safety minister Mike Penning said: 'The independent driving assessment gives candidates the chance to show they have the necessary skills to cope with the sort of traffic conditions they will face every day.

'Learning those sills from the very start of the driving process will help make new drivers safer.'

From the same day, candidates will now have to perform only one of the three reversing manoeuvres rather than two.