Middle-aged drivers should be retested, says Leeds grandfather who passed his advanced test first time

David Speight, 68, from Tingley, said that people often complain about young and older drivers, but he thinks the middle-aged drivers are the most dangerous.

The retired police photographer said this is because driving has changed dramatically since many people first passed their test.

He also believes the standard driving test is not rigorous enough and people need to be more proactive about being a safe driver.

Mr Speight said: “Everyday I see qualified drivers go through red lights, tailgating and changing lanes without indicating. These are not good drivers, even though they’ve passed the test.

“Cars have changed nowadays, the roads are different and there are new things to look out for. We even have four-lane smart motorways. Times change, things are very different to when people first pass and people should have to, and want to, learn how to adapt their driving.”

The grandfather-of-three first passed his motorbike test in around 1967 and passed his car driving test first time in 1980.

Despite being a qualified driver for almost 40 years, he took an Advanced Drivers Course this year for his birthday and passed the test first time.

The advanced driving tests are for people will a full driving licence, to help to refine road skills and make them safer and more competent drivers.

They focus on specific driving skills such as control, observation, timing, optimum road positioning, ability to deal with unpredictable roads and other road users’ behaviour.

Mr Speight said despite already being a good driver, his wife and grandchild noticed a big improvement after only a few lessons.

He believes the key to being a good driver is always being willing to learn and improve.

He said: “Settling for just passing a driving test that you took years ago isn’t safe driving, it’s just plodding on and hoping for the best.

“I take exception to average or bad drivers putting my life or children’s lives at risk - it’s not fair, it’s selfish and it’s stupid.

“We should all always want to improve our driving, even if we think we’re already a good driver. It’s about being better, and more importantly, being safer.”

Mr Speight took the Advanced Driver Course with charity IAM RoadSmart which costs £149.