Make Right Left Turns

Turning left in right-side driving countries is much harder than turning right, because of the need to look for oncoming traffic. Since many driving students have difficulties with this subject, I wrote an article to point the common mistakes. However, only my driving test guide provides enough information for the test and beyond.

Turn Left Well to Pass Your Driver's License Test

Left turns, in right-side driving, are usually more complicated than right turns. They involve going through oncoming traffic and often include estimating the speed and distance of oncoming traffic. This skill is often not developed enough in new drivers, and it becomes a real issue when this happens on the driving test.

The most common mistake is a maneuver that gives the students the most trouble - turning left from a stop sign into a crossing road. In this turn, the student has to look both ways to make sure no one is coming. Many students have a real trouble with this turn, since sometimes they can't estimate distances well.

When turning left, some students don't notice and make it too tight. When this happens, they sometimes enter another lane in their direction, or in the worse case, enter a lane with opposing traffic. This is a very dangerous situation and many accidents happened because of these wrong left turns.

One other mistake driving students make when turning left is wrong estimation of oncoming traffic. They slow down as they approach the intersection, look at the oncoming traffic and stop, even if they should go ahead and make their turn. Some drivers are very anxious about making left turns, so they wait until they can't see any car for a mile ahead and only then make their turn. During the driving test, the students are stressed, thus thinking "better safe than sorry" on these left turns and wait for a completely empty road. This is a wrong practice which could mean a test failure.

Another, very dangerous mistake is related to traffic lights. In some areas, especially in the United States, when turning left, the drivers enter the intersection and wait for oncoming traffic to clear. Some students, eager to turn and end the test quickly, turn just after the light turns green, before opposing traffic starts moving. This is a very fast way to end the test - but on the fail side.

All these problems can be solved easily with proper practice. Take your father, your mother, or a friend and practice with them. Make sure you have the proper guide to read from to make sure your practice is good and helpful for the test.

You can find guides to help you turn left well and also practice all driving maneuvers required for the test at the Pass Your Driver's License Test section of my site.

Don't forget to practice!
Nadav

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