Some of the key changes to the Highway code are listed here.
- smoking behind the wheel is a breach of the rules of the road and could be seen as a ‘distraction’
- new safety code for novice drivers, which includes ‘don’t show off or compete with other drivers’
- updates on vehicle emissions information
- new traffic calming initiatives explained: quiet lanes, high-occupancy vehicle lanes and home zones
- advice on the stopping powers of Highway Agency Traffic Officers
- an explanation of the law on smoking in company cars
Just to clarify one of these points. It IS NOT illegal to smoke whilst driving. However, if smoking can be shown to have caused a lack of proper control of the car, then that is the offence. This is nothing new. In the past there have be cases where motorists have been prosecuted for eating an apple or a packet of crisps at the wheel, for exactly the same reason.
Notwithstanding the above, it should be understood that it is now illegal to smoke in a driving school car whilst on lessons. In addition to this, if a learner driver arrives for a driving test in a car smelling of tabacco smoke, the test will be cancelled and the candidate will lose their test fee. All members of Bedford And District Driving Instructors Association will display a no smoking sign in their car and it is your right as a learner to recieve instruction in a smoke free environment. It is also the right of the instructor and examiner to work under the same conditions.
