MPs have called the DVLA “reckless” and the news is “deeply unsettling” that the agency with all of the UK’s drivers information can sell it to unsavoury company bosses. The DVLA is set to have a number of reforms and will be closely watched by ministers over the coming months. It was found that the Observices Parking Solutions company had been breaching the code of practice by the British Parking Association, and that the firm had been catching up with drivers some five months later to give them a parking fine. The firm also has been accused of not providing the appropriate signage, dismissing appeals and involving debt collection agencies unnecessarily.

In court, Mr Douglas Harris admitted to 36 offences, and has the £30k fine to pay back. Parking rules are enforced for a reason but the firm had been taking advantage of motorists who might have been unknowingly parked in the incorrect place as no signs were available to see. The DVLA will closely monitor all electronic requests for information so that they can be audited and checked to ensure that the information is only being used for the right purpose and not any criminal activity.

Many home insurers are threatening to not pay-out if fuel is kept at the home without prior consent and if legal requirements for storing fuel are not abided to then the person involved will be investigated and possibly prosecuted for storing dangerous liquids. The fire service suggests that anyone that must store fuel must only use the correctly labelled containers which are available at car accessory shops. If metal containers are used then 10 litres can be stored, but the more common plastic ‘jerry’ cans only hold 5 litres, and people should not have more than six gallons in total stored. The labels must state that the liquid is highly flammable and that petrol is labelled petroleum spirit.

When filling the tank, people should be outside and not in a garage or enclosed space. They should not keep the petrol in their home and if there are any leaks in the container then the area must be ventilated and no electrical switches should be used if vapour can be smelled as an explosion could occur from even the smallest of sparks. There is also the risk of arson or vandalism too, so people are urged not to carry fuel unless it’s completely necessary.

The London councils are working hard and around the clock to prepare for the summer Games without disturbing businesses and daily routines, which is why much of the work is carried out at night. This could stop Londoners from getting a good night’s sleep and that’s why the code of conduct has been made. Courier companies are worried that night-time only deliveries will affect their ability to supply businesses and homes with parcels through the day time as night-time delivers aren’t possible in some circumstances. The Transport for London are sympathetic with those living in and around London and therefore have tried to ensure that there disturbances are kept to an absolute minimum. The ORN will run from 25^th July through to the 14 September, and will run alongside the Paralympic Route Network too.

The enforcement will be as flexible as possible and of a light touch, as the Games should not hamper any businesses or people’s regular daily routine. It’s a big ask with London’s roads already clogged up with traffic at all times of the day, but with only a few months to go before the Games start this is part of the preparation and inhabitants will have to expect some extra activity at all hours of the day until the autumn.

It’s also expected that the airports will see the busiest of times at the weekend. There is an estimated 220,000 passengers due at Heathrow on Friday, and with 117,000 people departing with no problems recently it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. The top destinations this year for Easter breaks are Milan, Malaga and Dublin. Those flying from Stansted are said to unaffected by the Swissport baggage handler strike, which sees 150 people not turning up for work. Network Rail has major engineering work taking place but assures travellers that they will be unaffected by it. The work has been brought forward to April so it’s completed in time for the Olympics.

A survey of motorists found that 30% of people were planning on not driving more than 50 miles over the Easter weekend and 93% said they were not leaving the country over the same time period. As bleak weather is due and the uncertainty over fuel, people are more likely to stay in and around their hometown visiting friends and family rather than jetting off to sunnier climes.

As drivers aged between 17-29 are 30% more likely to have an accident than older drivers anyway, this new report adds another devastating number to it which will no doubt have an effect on the insurance of younger drivers around the country. The main reasons are that rural drivers tend to have much higher annual mileage than those living in the city and therefore are more likely to have accidents. There has been another report released which has been used in ranking young drivers who are involved in accidents compared to where they live and what types of cars they drive and the road types, to determine the hotspots throughout the country to help police and councils use traffic calming measures to try and reduce the numbers.

The results show that rural roads and measures to lower the numbers will require large investments into it to help the rural driver casualties come down and possibly provide and encourage young or inexperienced drivers to take part in further driver training. With a more clear understanding of what is going on with UK roads, young and old drivers, as well as what measures can be taken to cut the numbers of deaths, collisions and serious injuries down, the local authorities can piece together a plan of action to lower the amount of accidents that occur across the board and not just in city centres and suburbia.

However, the Government’s figures for motorcycle deaths actually dropped by 2% and pedestrians by the same figure, but cyclists saw a 4% rise in injuries and a startling 8% rise in deaths and serious injuries. This is why the motorcycle communities feel victimised due to one quarter being worse than others but aren’t as bad as cyclists.

The general consensus is that councils ad police need to work harder at calming dangerous roads and improve training after passing tests and ensuring that bad riding is stamped out, rather than targeting all motorcyclists. As the annual ratings for each mode of transport fell compared to the 2010 figures, including pedestrians (down 2%), cyclists (down 2%) and car drivers (down 7%) for serious injuries and deaths, the IAM said that they were simply focusing on the new results that were out for quarter three of 2011.

The longer-term trends and figures for the end quarter and 2011 as a whole will be released soon, which will show more accurate figures compared to 2010’s numbers. There is still a notion that all drivers and road users need to be safer on the roads, but with advances in cars having better safety features and side impact protection, the same cannot be said for cyclists and motorbike riders, and that is why there is more of a focus on those motorists that drive or ride around in vulnerable situations and is why when there is an accident with a motorbike the results are usually catastrophic.

The Wyre council in Lancashire told motorists that they should buy two tickets if they are going to encroach on another parking space. It’s thought that cars were 16% narrower 40 years ago than they are today and that councils are set to take advantage of this. Their argument is that the roads must be safe for pedestrians, bicycles and other drivers can use the roads without their vision being impeded by over-sized vehicles taking up too much space.

As there is a 4×4 buying craze in the UK, of which, the majority of them will be illegal when parked on most streets and therefore with the councils shortening the parking pays this has compounded the problem. The backlash for motorists and motoring groups is that proper signage should be fitted to streets where hefty fines are implemented on cars that are parked over white lines. However, there is another problem of a knock-on effect of one car being parked illegally and forces others to do the same, all of which could be landed with a fine caused by one car.

With more and more car manufacturers building larger or wider cars to incorporate more safety features, it’s a vicious circle of people wanting to buy the cars they like that are on sale, yet they can’t park in their own street for fear of falling victim to large fines.

This is the current state of affairs in India, the super-rich blasting around the pot-holed roads of bustling Indian cities that are also filled with squalor and poverty. There is such a divide there that makes the sight of a shiny Audi seem completely out of place, but with an astonishing 20% increase of high-end luxury cars being sold in the billion-strong country last year, business in the top-of-the-range car industry is booming. As the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, there is light at the end of the tunnel for many as the low-cost manufacturing base of India means that the cars can be churned out quickly and for less money than if they’re built in Europe.

There is only 1 in 10 that own a car in India, but many are on their second or third car buyer craze that just shows the divide of wealth in the country. There is an expected half a million unit growth this year for people buying cars in India, up to 3 million, and as infrastructure is trying to keep up and technology is advancing at a rapid pace there are pressures on the Indian government to build new roads and update existing ones.

Although there were 660,000 villages not connected to roads, 60% of those will now be and that should help increase car sales even more. As Land Rover and Jaguar are owned by Indian-born Tata Motors, there will be a massive help to British car sales as they are selling massively in India as a result of the buyer’s attitude to buying Land Rovers for its ‘status’ appeal.

The move comes as a sign that the previous driving theory test was flawed in that new or learner drivers were simply remembering the answers to the questions. Now that the test has changed, there is more of a focus on learning and understanding each area of the theory test so that they are ready for their practical test and have more knowledge and experience with signs, driving styles, the laws and legislations attached to driving. This will mean that the drivers will be more clued up on what to do during their driving lessons and test, and make for a higher-quality of driver once they do pass their test and are allowed out on the open road by themselves.

There are revisions being made to the car and motorcycle test, and the theory test books and software are being revamped to incorporate the new test. The practice questions will help drivers understand the different areas of driving need certain different types of knowledge, and this will surely have an impact on the amount of people who pass their theory test simply through learning the pre-published questions and answers. The Driving Agency has also created an iPhone app to help revising for the theory test, so that new drivers can practice the tests and monitor their progress through the whole driving test procedure.

The move came around after the PM answered questions regarding the death of a 14-year old boy who was killed by a drug-driver, and states that it’s important to take drug-use and mixing it with driving more seriously. Police will be given the equipment to test for drugs in the system of drivers, so that they can prosecute more accurately. The new law was mentioned back in March 2011, but will now come into play most likely after the Queen’s speech in the spring. The new legislation will make it illegal for drivers who get into their cars shortly after taking illegal drugs, in which around 3% of the population between the ages of 17-24 years old admitted to driving a car while being under the influence of drugs.

It’s noted that around 18% of road traffic accident victims are killed each year by drivers that have illegal substances within their bloodstream and with the most common drug being cannabis. The new law will be most likely implemented over the next few months, with police already being equipped with the new testing equipment immediately so they are ready to capture and test drivers that are using illegal drugs. They will have the power to stop them driving any further and can put cases forward for prosecution, in the same was as they do with drunk-drivers.