Expert Blog | Drivingschool

What manoeuvres are required on a driving test?

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There are some manoeuvres, that should be carried out during a driving test. These are an essential part of the driving test and allow the examiner to assess how accurately the vehicle can be handled.

The required manoeuvres are:

- Parallel parking (reverse parking);

- Bay parking (left and right);

- Hill start;

- Turn in the Road (three point turn);

- Reverse around a corner.

We will talk today about the parallel parking which is one of the most feared out of all the driving test manoeuvres.

With some practice and a few tips, you’ll be surprised to discover that it’s actually quite easy.

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The parallel parking is a fundamental manoeuvre you should be able to drive into a parking spot on the street by reversing into it from a parallel direction.

There are three steps that you should follow:

1. Find a space

When you find a free parking space make sure that it

is in an area where it is legal for you to park and that you

won’t be causing a hazard.

Some streets are not suitable for parallel parking because

they’re too busy and you won’t be able to find a gap in the

traffic to reverse.

The parking space between two cars should be at least one and a half times the length of your own vehicle.

Shuterstock image

2. Make sure that you signal in advance

When you want to complete the parallel park manoeuvre, make sure you know who is behind you and slow down well in advance, indicating your intentions to pull in.

Stop your car alongside the vehicle you want to park behind, making sure you are parallel and reasonably close. The reverse lights on your vehicle will let the traffic behind you know what do you intend to do.

Make sure that you don’t get too close to the vehicle you pull up next to. You need sufficient room to be able to get the angle you need to swing your car backwards into position.

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Parking in big cities issue Shutterstock image https://gfycat.com/mindlessclumsyantarcticfurseal

3. Reverse in the parking space

Check around to be sure that it’s safe to reverse then move backwards until your car’s rear tyres are level with the back of the car you are currently alongside.

Turn your steering wheel to the left to place your car roughly 45 degrees diagonally from the kerb and reverse approximately two feet close to the kerb.

Check around to make sure that it is safe to continue then remove the left hand lock and apply sufficient right hand lock to straighten the car up, allowing your vehicle to slowly continue to move backwards. Now your car should be parallel with the kerb.

If needed steer your car slightly to the left to straighten up your wheels, continuing to move it slowly backwards into the ideal position.

4. Observation

A good manoeuvre involves all round observation skills. While you are watching the movement of your car, you have to watch for pedestrians and other road users.

If other road users are approaching , you should stop and let them go around you if possible.

When you’re moving the car into its final position, the front of your vehicle will swing out quite sharply so make sure that you have enough space to not hit the car in front of you as you straighten up your car.

To perform a good parallel parking, you need to practice. Our instructors are very patient with their students. They are thoroughly professional in teaching students how to perform the manoeuvres required and learn how to drive.

We prepare our students for safe and confident driving for the rest of their life.

Rsa.ie. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://www.rsa.ie/Documents/ADI/RSA_Standards_Proced.pdf> [Accessed 26 March 2021].

Images.unsplash.com. 2021. [online] Available at: <https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1591385048763-4d3471fe0587?ixid=MXwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHw%3D&ixlib=rb-1.2.1&auto=format&fit=crop&w=2467&q=80> [Accessed 26 March 2021].