LEARNING TO DRIVE A MOTOR

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 134, 2 March 1921, Page 6

LEARNING TO DRIVE A MOTOR

HOW IT IS DONE EXTRAORDINARY EXPERIENCES OF; INSPECTORS Daily the rota of motorists and motorlorry drivers increases in Wellington, and daily greater care is needed in driving, not only in the thick of mid-city traffic, but on all occasions. It is not generally known that the majority of accidents occur out of the heavy traffioarea—not in it. The reason for that is that a driver is concentrating on his work when in heavy traffic, bnt when he gets, out on .to the broad highway he feels he may relax a little, and at times such relaxation has a sudden ending. The reason why accidents are peculiar to jby-rlders may be eet down to the driver allowing his attention to wander from the wheel. As to how people learn to drive, a DOMINION reporter sought information from a corporation inspector, whose day-to-day life among the uninitiated is the reverse of dull or uneventful. How do they learn to drive? That was the trouble, according to the official. They come along to apply for a certificate, he said, and before you know where you are ’ they are daring death with the official for a pal. The procedure was simple enough’. When a man wished to learn to drive he had first to get hold of a car. If he were known ae a nice, quiet, steadynerved fellow, some friend might put him through in the quiet hours of the morning or evening on some deserted road. If he were not lucky enough to command such friendship, he had to buy his own car to learn in, and secure or hire someone to show him first essentials” as to the working of the steering wheel, the clutch, the petrol and air levers, etc. At length having a fairly good idea of the duty of each part’ and his own to the machine, the learner should venture gently amongst traffic, light traffic at first, working up to Manners and Willis Streets problems, To do this it was incumbent upon him to take with hiinjft driver already certificated. and so tutored he gradually achieved skill enough to meet all emergencies. Then, and not fill then, should the new driver apply to the Chief Motor Inspector’s office for a driver s license. To earn that they had to take the car where they were told by one of the inspectors, with his watchful qye on the learner’s hands and feet. On how the’ driver manipulated Hip car under all circumstances depended the inspecto s decision. He wanted efficiency—not. sudden deaths in the street. „He insisted on n. man "knowing his job.' Our inspector informant stated that manv were called but few were chosen, meaning that there were a great many who applied for drivers’ licenses who were told to "Come again,”, which virtually meant: "Go away, learn a lot more, and come back again when you think you know enough to qualify, and we will look you over -again I” m "Sometimes our experiences are fnnny. Baid the inspector: "sometimes they are too funny to laugh about. I had one to-day. A. big hulking chap, who had been driving a team of horses all his life had been provided with a motor truck, and had been told that if he wished to hold his job he had to learn to drive. I took him over the Terrnoe, and could see at once that he knew little about hill-climbing. He went to go round the hairpin bend into Boulcot.t Street in one grand sweep, and anyone might have seen the truck trying to climb a telegraph pole. "When we got the truck back to the horizontal my hefty friend told me that he had not had any experience in hill climbing. I showed him that to get round such a turn the best wav would be to go a little down Everton Terrace, then back up again, and turn into Bouleott street. He tried it. Before I knew where we were, the truck was rushing over a lot of loose shingle down Everton Terrace towards the brMge, with my friend tugging and pulling at the steering wheel ns thongh it was le reins. shouting-"Whoal Whoa;” as the perspiration streamed down his crimson face. But the truck would not whoa, bo I shouted to him to put his foot on the brake. Two feet went down on everything there was in the form of a foot-rest, the truck skidded sideways, and we struck the concrete wall. 1 couldn’t tell you what that driver said, but he consigned the truck and all such contraptions to Gehenna, and said that horses were good enough for him. Hs would get over that stage in a «ay ° r two. I expect him to come at ma again next week.” On another occasion a one-armed man applied for a certificate. There was nothing the man could not do. He was like lightning in the manipulating of the wheel, clutch, apd horn, and even rounding sharp corners, or a down grade the man was a marvel, but he h™,™ be turned down. It was .a hard thing to do, but emergencies do arise m driving a car where twp hands are a necessity.