Tips and Blogs

Temperatures across the UK have soared to 30 degrees and more this week, and as Coronavirus restrictions begin to be relaxed across the UK, more people are heading out on the road for day trips and to visit friends and family. Richard Gladman, IAM RoadSmart Head of Driving & Riding Standards, offers his top tips to staying safe behind the wheel in the hot weather.

New powers have been granted to local councils to enforce cycle lanes – but do you know your road markings? Ignorance of the law is no defence, so with new bicycle facilities popping up all over our towns and cities at the moment, as cycling is encouraged to ease pressure on public transport during the Coronavirus pandemic, it is now more important than ever to know where and when you can park. Cars or motorcycles illegally parked on mandatory cycle lanes can force cyclists to deviate from their path and put them at risk of conflict with passing vehicles. From today (22 June 2020) councils can use CCTV vans to record offences. Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart’s Director of Policy and Research, therefore offers some top tips to help brush up your knowledge and ensure you know the rules of the road around cycle lanes and where you are allowed to park.

With the Met Office issuing yellow weather warnings for heavy rain, thunder storms and possible floods across the country, Richard Gladman, IAM RoadSmart head of driving and riding standards offers tips for driving in the wet.

With a phased return to school for primary school pupils due to begin in England next week following Coronavirus restrictions, IAM RoadSmart is reminding parents, carers, drivers and riders to be on full alert in the vicinity of schools. With drop-off and collection arrangements likely to be staggered and some people only just returning to driving or riding after an extended period away from the roads, the need for vigilance around schools will be essential over the coming weeks. Richard Gladman, IAM RoadSmart’s Head of Driving and Riding Standards has some advice on how to make sure it’s as safe as possible for all road users.

During the Coronavirus lockdown traffic in certain areas has reduced to next to nothing. But it's critical we avoid putting any additional pressure on the emergency services at this time, so we need to share the road space safely with the many vulnerable road users out exercising. IAM RoadSmart’s head of driving and riding standards, Richard Gladman, has put together a few simple tips to keep us all safe on the road.

I was really interested to read recently that experts at the German equivalent of the AA (ADAC) have suggested a new classification scheme to help drivers understand the different types of driverless car.

The year is 1979 and we are just about to enter the 80s, technology and innovation is running rampant. Sir Clive Sinclair is leading a generation of young people into the world of computers with the ZX80, soon to be followed by the ZX81 with its massive 1K of built in memory.

Having just returned from a long weekend visiting relatives in Spain, here are my reflections and top tips for anyone contemplating driving a hire car on the continent this summer.

Having recently become an Advanced Driver (did I mention I got a F1RST) my attentions have now turned to applying the same developments to my riding skills.

We all know that new cars these days are bristling with new technologies aimed at keeping us, and other road users, safe.