to have been driving a year on Saturday and have not yet driven on a motorway?

[Oliveoil]

I have refused so far due to lack of confidence and general gibbering at the wheel.

Motorways are far easier to drive on than other types of roads.

YANBU - I've had my license for 8 years and have only been on the motorway a couple of times (a lesson after i passed my test, on a refresher lesson and on a couple of bits that I know are easy bits to drive on - no slip road )

no, of course not unreasonable.

i don't go on them much, but stay in the inside lane and take your time. don't let other drivers intimidate you.

Oh, I was just like that Oliveoil. I was terrified! In the end I drove on a motorway after I think about 6 months but only because I had to. The thing is, the more I did it, the easier it got and in fact motorway driving is actually a lot easier than driving round busy town centres etc.

The best tip that someone gave me was to remember to leave lots of time and warning (in other words indicate in plenty of time) before you change lanes/leave the motorway etc. That way other drivers can give you a wide berth if need be.

Go on, have a go!

I know how you feel but believe me they are far easier to drive on than normal roads....is it the speed that you dont like???

mainly the speed I think

I just go ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ffs look at all this metal coming at me

also, the motorway to my mum and dad house you join....get this....into the FAST LANE on the way back

I would be there for ever refusing to go home

dh says he is going to make me go this weekend to ikea as my local one is 3 junctions away

Go and have an advanced driving lesson (1 should be enough), so that you do it in a "safe" environment, with nice driving instructor instead of impatient DH.

Please don't turn into one of those "I don't do motorways" people - it always makes me think you are limiting the very freedom and independence which were the whole point of learning to drive in the first place.

Can you tell I know some people like that?

its the getting off and on i dread, the longer you leave it the worse it is, agree it is easier than driving around town, the speeds are scary, i easily get to 100mph and i dont realise it. my mum has been driving for 35 years and has never driven on one, or gone over 40mph. i hate lorrys aswell, didnt realise the amount of spray they throw out when its raining, you cant see.

it is easier once you get used to the speeds. take your time, check wing mirrors constantly, especially when entering. if you signal drivers will know what you're planning to do next.

I've been driving for 5 years and never driven on a motorway. I do live on the Isle of Wight though!! I never go into 5th gear either, because 99% of the time I don't drive faster than 40mph. I have driven on the mainland a few times - scares the shit out of me, I'm not denying it!!

I passed my test just over a year ago and i hate motorways as well. i'm not so bad once i'm on them although my little micra finds it hard to get up to 70! but i absolutely hate joining them, i always seem to time it wrong and get beeped (usually for not speeding up enough!) I feel your pain to be honest i'm just not a big fan of driving in general but it gets me out of the house!

I am not a big fan of driving either

dh 'promised' me a little run around when I passed and what did I get? Feck all, that's what. I have to drive some stupid tank thing that is too big and too fast.

My sister could not understand why I paid for a motorway lesson after I passed my test (was about 3 months later iirc) as she had driven on the motorway the same afternoon she passed.

I had to explain to her that her local motorway (M5) is a lot different to my local motorway (M23/M25)

Once I had had my lesson I still did not drive on the motorway until my other sister came to visit (another 3 months) as I would not dare to go on the motorway with DH

Bite the bullet go for a lesson just hope that it is not like mine - M25, Friday, Rush Hour, Stuck in traffic for 90 mins!!!

my local one is the M60 (I think)

too fecking fast anyhoo

yanbu - I'm still nervous 10 years on - refresher lessons are a good idea

i used to be like you OO.

but now i much prefer the motorway.

but am NOT looking forward to dh first foray onto the M25 soon after transplant.

I totally understand, as like you, passed just a year ago, while 6 and a half months pregnant. It was a terrifying first few months behind the wheel. Was driving up til 41 weeks pregnant because i was determined to get as confident as i could before DS was born.

Nearly a year on i've had to get over my fears to drive on the motorway to work, and i'm feeling much better about it, and don't have the 'my hearts in my mouth' feeling anymore.

The best way to overcome your worries is to get out practising with a good friend or on your own on sat/sun mornings when there is no-one about until you know your routes/ feel more confident about slip roads. It helps if you have no baby in the car too.

I've been doing the motorway thing on my own for six months and last weekend finally felt happy enough to travel on one with DS.

The best thing about motorways though is knowing they are getting me home from work quicker than other roads can to cuddle my son!

m25 is just full of lorries. when i first drove on the motorway, i stuck behind hgvs and caravans. wasn't long before that got boring! it's one of those things where the fear is much worse than the reality.

Also remember don't judge yourself according to other people, we all feel differently about driving. Those that have been behind the wheel for years all too easily forget what it feels like to be a novice!

i only passed 6 years ago at 33

I only passed my test a few months ago - luckily we have a motorway like bypass that I was used to driving on, so I did actually drive on a motorway the day after I passed. However, I never needed to drive through a busy town centre for my lessons/tests so I was terrified of that for months. I also was petrified of driving on my own and didn't do that for 3 months.

Like most things you put off, when I actually drove through town (on my own) I realised that I was more than capable.

My next big challenge is to drive somewhere I dont know on my own, and actually find my way reading road signs etc.

A motorway lesson is a brilliant idea to help give you the confidence. Go for it!

I agree with whoever said not driving on the m'way defeats the object of learning to drive at all, by limiting your independence and freedom. BUT, OO, I drove for years before getting anywhere near a motorway - I was terrified. Complete mental block about it, couldn't do it.

The I got an invite to a good friend's wedding and there was no way of getting there without driving on the motorway unless I spent literally hundreds of pounds and hours and hours on the train. So I got a good friend to mapread and yell out the junctions (v.useful) - and went for it. (I should point out that the night before I was almost in tears at the thought, I was so scared.)

It was FINE. Honestly. I was white-knuckled for the first 20 mins and then relaxed into it and forgot to be scared. Now I genuinely enjoy motorway driving and even get quite excited when I know I've got a long motorway journey coming up [saddo] In fact, I spent today on the M25 and M40

Snafu - you're not the only saddo, I love motorway driving now too. I was gutted when DH had to do all the motorway driving on a recent journey as was feeling pregnancy-related poorly so didn't think it was wise to drive .

Strange, isn't it? I'm now actually annoyed with myself for not conquering The Fear a lot sooner, because it does limit you. For years there were lots of things I didn't do and people I didn't see because it would have meant m'way driving.

The thought is FAR scarier than the reality, olive.