Residents in a leafy London suburb are going to war with the constant stream of learner drivers plaguing their street with terrible three point turns, parallel parking and reversing around corners.
The streets in the Park Langley area of Bromley, South East London, where houses are sold for over £1million, are perfect for learners drivers because they are wide and largely traffic free.
However, residents are fed up with the scores of learner drivers clogging up their tree lined streets and parking outside their detached houses with their engines idling.
The residents’ association in the suburb previously wrote to one driving school asking them to choose other roads to give locals a break.
The Motor Schools Association of Great Britain – the longest established representative group and trade association for driving instructors – hit back, saying that it isn’t illegal.
One resident, who asked not to be named, said on a recent walk they saw at least 20 learner vehicles pass by in half an hour.
The streets in the Park Langley are perfect for learners drivers because they are wide and largely traffic free
Residents are fed up with the scores of learner drivers clogging up their tree lined streets
A learner driver pulls out onto the street after being parked on the street in Park Langley
‘It does get a bit annoying, especially when they park up outside your house and leave their engines running,’ they said.
‘I guess there is nothing wrong with it per se, but I am constantly amazed at the sheer numbers around here.
‘Some days I see more learner drivers than I do normal vehicles.
‘They’re queuing up at junctions and you have to avoid them doing three point turns.’
Werner Schluep, of the Park Langley Residents’ Association, said they had tried to address the issue.
‘We have noticed learner drivers in Park Langley for many years now,’ said Mr Schluep.
‘The ability to try and change where they choose to take their learners is very limited.
‘We have written to Red driving school in the past and indeed you don’t see many Reds around.
‘Then we asked another to switch off their engine and not idle when giving static instructions.
‘This worked or the student qualified and moved on. So we as an association do try.’
Peter Harvey, of the Motor Schools Association, said: ‘There are no regulations that restrict driving instructors from going where they want as long as it’s legal.
‘Lots of people will say that although they are a pain when they are there, they are actually quite good for looking after people’s properties as burglars are less likely to want to get caught somewhere where there are constantly cars around, so some may actually think it’s a good thing.
‘If there is a test centre somewhere nearby, instructors tend to use some areas more – if instructors are using it, it’s because examiners are too.
‘It might be a bit annoying, but everyone has to learn to drive. And there’s so much traffic around now that these quiet roads are actually quite rare.’
Bromley does have a test centre, but it is right over the other side of the town.
Figures from April 2022 to April 2023 show it has one of the highest pass rates in Greater London, with 5,266 tests conducted and 2,813 passes – a success rate of 53%.
Bromley does have a test centre, but it is right over the other side of the town
The residents’ association in the suburb previously wrote to one driving school asking them to choose other roads to give locals a break
One resident, who asked not to be named, said on a recent walk they saw at least 20 learner vehicles pass by in half an hour
The average pass rate from all 330 practical driving test centres in 2022/23 was 48%.
Howard Redwood, head of road safety at the Driving Instructors Association, said the issue in Park Langley was one of the reasons why driving test centres don’t publish test routes.
He said the issue was so bad in one area a few years back that residents asked their council to turn their road into a private route, meaning through traffic was banned altogether.
‘The instructors should be training people to drive on any sort of road,’ Mr Redwood said.
‘The residents could write to the local test centre and ask the manager to bring it to the attention of driving instructors.’
Colin Paterson, spokesman for RED Driver Training, said: ‘In the wake of the pandemic, there’s been a notable uptake in the desire to learn to drive, resulting in an increased number of learner drivers on our local roads.
‘At RED Driver Training, our nationwide instructors are trained to select suitable roads for learners with safety as the number one priority.
‘We kindly request your patience when encountering these learners – many can empathise with the initial fears of driving.
‘These individuals are not just students; they are our neighbours, family, and friends, seeking to learn in familiar environments.’