Learning to Drive

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Does anyone have advice about learning to drive? I'm 35 and have never had a driver's license, though I've obtained a learner's permit three times.

I find driving overwhelming and frightening. It requires a number skills that I've always been weak in: coordination, multitasking, being aware of one's environment, reacting quickly. I'm about to try again to learn, but I already feel discouraged.

I hope this doesn't sound too negative but if you're really bad at these things then maybe you should just avoid driving for your own safety.

Is the public transport good where you live? Even though I drive, the older I get the more I'm a fan of public transport. It just seems more efficient.

Edit: I just saw that you live in Montana so public transport might not be an option for you.

I'm not bad enough at them that anyone else considers it an impediment. My whole family wants me to learn to drive and tells me that lots of people much less capable than I am do it. I think if I can get enough practice, it will probably be okay. Yet getting past the fear and overwhelm in order to get the practice is a problem.


My town has limited bus routes with service once an hour, so I can get some places on the bus. For some places I go regularly, though, the bus is indeed not an option.

While your location may not provide much (or any) in the way of public transportation, you can turn that into a positive in that there should be plenty of quiet back roads you can drive on while you get the hang of it.

My recommendation is to get all the practice you can. To drive with a learners permit you have to have a fully licensed person with you so get as many different people to accompany you as you can round up. Also, first have them drive while you watch to see what they do and how they do things.

Keep a positive outlook and with enough practice, you can do this.

Back when I used to drive, listening and singing along to loud music helped me drown out the unecessary stimuli and focus on the stuff that matters. This might feed into the ADHD aspect that a lot of us have?

My brother even watches TV shows on his phone while driving and he's a model driver. I'm not reccommending that one for obvious reasons, but I hope that drives the point across that paying too much attention can also ruin your driving.

I have a license but i barely if ever drive. The mixture of horrible drivers where i live and the same problems (trouble multitasking, concentrating) makes it so hard

Self driving car

Move somewhere with better public transportation

Uber, taxi, unicycle

Hire someone with experience teaching autistics driving


All those proposals $$$$$, but there is something wrong with everything

If you're going to learn to drive then learn to be a defensive driver. That is, you should always assume the other cars are going to run you over even if you have the right of way. There are so many bad and inconsiderate drivers out there that you really need to be careful. I'm very experienced at driving and have probably driven over a half million miles by now and I prefer to not drive whenever possible. This is not because I don't trust my own abilities but rather I don't trust the other drivers on the road. I've seen way too much twisted, burning metal on the side of the road that I've developed a healthy sense of self preservation.

Also, just be honest with yourself and don't do anything you are not comfortable with. If the freeway makes you nervous then don't use it. Take your time with the learning phase with a licensed driver in the car and don't be in too big of a rush to drive on your own until you know you are ready.

The nice thing about driving is that it has very specific rules. Even though most experienced drivers don't drive that way -- following all the rules every time -- you can. Stay in your lane, stop at stop signs and look both ways, signal when you want to turn, and get into the turning lane early, and so on. Your responsibility is the piece of road ahead of you (and the piece of road where you will make a turn or change lanes if needed), everything else is not your problem. (Of course you don't want to create a hazard by stopping suddenly, but technically it's the person behind you's fault if they hit you.)

Still, it's up to you to know what you can handle. Personally, I can only drive where traffic is very light.

I recently got mine.

Just practice as much as you can. And then some more. Automatic car if you can.

Know exactly what is expected in the test and see if any schools offer pre-tests. Know how to drive 'properly', the way examiners will expect. So proper hand placement on the wheel, always obeying the limit and making sure they can see you check mirrors

It took me 3 tries to pass. First time was instant fail after I forget my new insurance disk (So yeah, don't forget that).

Second time I was too hesitant turning right on 4 separate occasions, a fail here.

I find I need silence to drive, concentration is so important. Although I enjoy driving at night when it's quiet

I found it hard to picture myself driving, put it off for years, but now I can drive to work and it's ok. Always keep in mind what others are doing. If you're going the speedlimit and someone is tailgating you just let them, you're in the right.

Public transportation is impractical in many areas of the US.

You might get public transportation in Montana only in places like Billings, Great Falls, Missoula-----cities over about 10,000 people.

The best piece of advice is to make sure you look what the driver in front of you is doing. Always keep to your lane. Slow down to 5 mph when making a turn. Don't let other drivers rush you.

It took me a while to learn to drive----but I did it, eventually. The best way to learn to drive well is to practice.

Hello Olly.

I got back into learning how to drive in March and am progressing really well. I would say the best thing to do to get more confident in driving is to practice, practice, practice and keep it up

Hello, everybody. Thank you very much for your advice, which was useful. I passed my driver's test about a month ago, and things have been going well so far with my driving independently.