Advanced Driving

Becoming a safer road user for your own safety and those around you

Advanced Driving: Defensive and Economical Driving is a crucial course for professional drivers responsible for transporting goods and people. As fuel prices and vehicle maintenance costs continue to rise, businesses are increasingly focused on reducing their fleet’s fuel consumption and overall maintenance expenses. The days of simply putting a licensed driver behind the wheel without proper knowledge of advanced driving techniques are long gone.

The primary goal of Advanced Driving, also referred to as Defensive and Economical Driving, is to promote economical driving practices that minimize fuel usage and keep vehicle operating costs at a minimum. While diesel engines may be more fuel-efficient than petrol engines of the same size, adopting the right driving habits and mindset can significantly reduce your vehicle’s running expenses.

Assessing the conditions in which one is driving is among the most crucial aspects of driving, particularly for professional drivers. Being aware of changing driving conditions distinguishes good drivers from mediocre or poor ones. This course also covers other important topics such as driver fatigue, common causes of accidents, eye lead time, lane discipline, and effective communication with other drivers on the road to ensure mutual awareness.

Overall, this comprehensive course equips professional drivers with the necessary skills and knowledge to drive defensively, economically, and responsibly.

This course covers the following topics

1. Driver fatigue
2. Common Causes of Accidents
3. Eye lead time
4. Lane discipline
5. Communicating with other drivers on the road

More about advanced driving: Defensive and Economical Driving

Defensive and Economical Driving is a system that has been adopted from the United States of America and adapted for implementation on South African roads. This system focuses on important aspects such as vehicle empathy, fuel consumption, avoiding danger, and effectively communicating with other road users to ensure visibility and awareness of one’s actions.

Effective communication with fellow road users plays a crucial role in your journey to your next destination. The ability to anticipate their actions or communicate your intentions is essential for being a safe road user. Often, accidents occur because drivers did not expect certain actions from other vehicles involved in collisions. By predicting the behavior of surrounding vehicles, drivers can steer clear of potential dangers and position themselves in areas where they have an escape route or alternative direction to exit.

Adapting driving style to changing conditions, including rain, wind, road surface, or visibility, is necessary for safe driving. Unfortunately, many drivers fail to slow down during adverse weather conditions like heavy winds or rainfall, leading to severe accidents. The Defensive and Economical Driving System emphasizes the impact of different driving conditions on visibility and highlights the negative effects on vehicle maneuverability.

Throughout the years, this system has been continually developed, improved, and reviewed to accommodate evolving driving trends and advancements in vehicle technology. The course also covers braking systems such as ABS (Antilock Braking System), Electronic Power Steering System (EPS), and Stability Control System (Electronic Stability Program ESP) so that drivers understand how these systems function and how their vehicles react in specific situations. The course also addresses important concepts like Under-Steer and Over-Steer.

The Defensive and Economical Driving System is organized into five key areas that are easy to remember and apply when making decisions or adjusting one’s driving style. By employing the 5 keys of ADVANCED DRIVING: Defensive and Economical Driving, individuals can ensure their safety at all times and be prepared to respond if driving situations/conditions change. These keys also help maintain a safe driving space and minimize the likelihood of encountering dangerous driving scenarios.

Defensive and Economical Driving Assessment
After completing the Defensive Driving course, delegates are required to return after 4 weeks for their practical assessment. This is done to ensure that the Defensive driving system becomes ingrained in their habits when operating a vehicle.

Defensive Driving can be effectively combined with other courses such as Anti Hijack, Gravel Road Driving, Collision Avoidance, and Driver Rehabilitation Programs (for drivers who have been in a serious accident or have not driven for an extended period of time).

Some clients opt for our combination ‘Advanced Driving Course’, which encompasses multiple courses including Defensive and Economical Driving, Gravel Road Driving, Map Reading, 4×4 training, and K53 Refresher Training. These courses are customized to cover all aspects of the driver’s responsibilities.

Defensive and Economical Driving Re-Certification
The Defensive and Economical Driving course remains valid for a period of 2 years. After the expiration of the certificate, drivers are obligated to participate in a 2-hour re-certification briefing, which is followed by a re-certification assessment. During this briefing, the instructor will provide a brief overview of all necessary topics and subsequently accompany the driver on the road to ensure that they still adhere to the principles of the Defensive and Economical Driving system. In case the driver successfully passes this assessment, they will be awarded a new certificate that remains valid for another 2-year period. However, if the driver fails to meet the required standards during the assessment, they will need to retake the entire Defensive and Economical Driving course.

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