Safe driving scheme rolled out in schools

A NEW scheme to cut the number of young people being killed or injured on Scotland's roads was unveiled today as part of an overhaul of the driving test.

The course in safe road use for under 17-year-olds will be piloted in schools and colleges across the country this autumn before being rolled out to the rest of the UK.

The optional certificate will cover the Highway Code, planning journeys, peer pressure, fatigue and eco-driving.

The initiative is one of a series of proposals outlined to reform the way people learn to drive and how they are tested.

Road deaths and serious injuries have fallen by 33 per cent since the mid 1990s, but the casualty rate for young drivers has not changed.

One-in-five people have an accident within six months of passing their test and newly-qualified drivers and their passengers account for 20 per cent of all car deaths in Britain.