Steve at Driving School WA here. In this short video, I'll be demonstrating one of the most
common driving test routes here in Cannington in Western Australia. The car park is a little bit
quieter than usual because this video was shot about 4 30 pm on a weekday and the last test of
the day is at 3 40 pm. As you approach the exit of the car park, there's a pedestrian crossing,
as you can see, and we have to give way to traffic on the right-hand side. If you have to give way if
there's a vehicle on the right-hand side, do not block the pedestrian crossing until that
vehicle is gone. Now we have two lanes one is turning left, one is turning right. Now,
this vehicle is reversing because probably the car in front of them took a bit too long,
but whatever you do, don't do this in your driving assessment. Now, if you have a car of this
size like we've got on our right-hand side, SUV or a four-wheel drive standing next to them blocking
your view, don't enter the road unless you can see everything perfectly. I can see a little
bit through their windows but definitely not even 50 per cent. If this was your driving test and if
you started to move before this vehicle that's next to us clears, you would fail on the spot.
The assessor would have to intervene. Now we can go over to the right lane because there was a car
in the left lane. You will see in the moment they're turning left in the car park, so for that
reason, I can change lanes as soon as I see that they're not catching up. I'll show you a different
scenario in a moment when there is a there's a vehicle that's actually speeding up and, you know,
catching up really quickly. So, in that case, I will not even change lanes. I'm going to remain
in the right lane. See this time that silver car had blocked the pedestrian crossing as they were
waiting for the cars coming from their right-hand side, which is wrong. So avoid doing that in the
driving test. The reason I'm explaining this exit here a little bit more thoroughly is because a
lot of people fail without even going through the assessment. Also, pay attention to the white solid
unbroken line dividing the two lanes here. Don't step on that white solid line. This time we have
a car in the left lane, and it seems to be going really fast. So I'm gonna go to the right lane.
I'm gonna keep an eye on the mirror and see if they're catching up fast. This time he is
definitely coming, and you know, I'm not going to go to the left lane just yet. So you can see him
in the mirror. So it's just about 10 meters behind me now, and if I attempted to change or if I went
in front of it initially, I would have slowed them down significantly. And most importantly,
if I went to the left lane, the assessor would probably intervene and terminate the assessment.
As you can see in my left mirror, that vehicle is just next to me now, and despite the fact that
I'm approaching the roundabout with two lanes, I'm not going to be changing to the left lane.
So I'm going to proceed in the right lane. So don't change lanes at any cost. So you've got to
understand what's happening within your immediate surroundings because your situational awareness
plays a huge role in order to pass your driving assessment. Now we're back to the first scenario,
and we're going to continue from here on. Now we have a double-lane roundabout,
so at the time of recording of this video, it was under construction, but now it's been completed.
So make sure that there's no one to give way to before you proceed. If you can be in the left
lane if you're going straight through, but like I've showed you in the previous situation if you
can't change before you get to this roundabout, don't worry. Your next hurdle here is the level
railway crossing. You have to look left and right in case the gate malfunctions. Immediately after
the level crossing, you have to form one lane. Indicate right, check your mirrors and look over
your shoulder. This time we didn't have any traffic, but in the test, if you forget to
indicate check your mirrors and look over your shoulder properly, the examiner might decide
to discontinue your driving assessment. Now we're approaching the single-lane roundabout.
The building on the right-hand side is blocking our view, so you've got to be very cautious in
this particular one because some candidates look away too soon. When you approach any roundabout,
you have to anticipate from the distance any traffic that's coming from your right-hand side.
In a situation where your view is obstructed, you've got to be much more alert. You may need
to slow down a little bit more, and your last check should be at least a few meters before you
enter the roundabout. Now we're approaching the intersection that most candidates fear.
There's a set of traffic lights where you may need to give way to the cars from opposite direction
without the green arrow, which means that you would need to line up in the middle after the
last car that was in front of you cleared the intersection, and then wait for the opposite
direction to clear before you proceed. This time we had a green arrow, so that was the easiest,
which is what a lot of people hope for. I always suggest to people hope is not a good strategy
and don't wish that things were easier wish you were better. Now we're heading to Dulwich Street,
which is in Beckenham, and there are some weird, unusual slow points where one direction gives way
to the other direction. So I'll show you that in a minute. Now we've got a roundabout. If you are
turning, you have to give way to pedestrians or, clearly, in this situation, a person on a mobility
scooter. Often we get questions, what about the traffic from behind, what about if they beep
you and if they impatiently want to proceed? So, just ignore them because they don't know. So you
have to ignore them, so you have to give way to pedestrians when you're turning. This is Dulwich
Street in Beckenham, and we are approaching those unusual slow points that I mentioned before.
If we got there any sooner, the car that just came past from the opposite direction would have waited
because they had a giveaway sign. By the way, you have to indicate and check the blind spot in these
situations. As you can see here, the opposite direction has give way. So if you are approaching
from there and you have a vehicle where we are currently, you would have to give way. Don't
disregard this sign because it's just as valid as any other giveaway sign. Now we're approaching the
normal slow point, so you don't need to indicate or check your blind spot in this one because
there's no giveaway or anything like that. So they designed this particular layout because,
reportedly, there were hoons along this street, you know, running a muck, you know, they decided
to slow the traffic down a little bit. Now we have a blind bend which is a 90-degree bend.
Slow down to about 20 kilometres an hour because if you're too fast around the 90-degree corner,
the examiner will potentially intervene and discontinue your driving assessment. Now we
have a jelly bean roundabout or irregular shape roundabout. We have an entire video on this topic.
Make sure that you check that out. We're turning right here, so we need to indicate right. A lot
of people seem to be very confused about when to indicate when exiting one of these roundabouts.
So here I'm going to leave my right-hand side indicator on, and I'm going to treat the situation
as if I'm turning right at the t junction. So if your indicator switches itself off here,
which is okay, leave it off until you pass the last exit. So now we need to indicate left out
to let the driver from the opposite side know that we are no longer proceeding in their direction.
But more importantly, if I indicated too early, I would have misled potentially a driver that's on
my left-hand side and, in the worst-case scenario, collided with it. Once again refer to the video
explaining the irregular shape roundabouts or so-called jelly bean roundabouts. We're
on Williams Street, cruising at 60 kilometres an hour. If you're taking assessment at Cannington,
it's best to come down here at least about 90 minutes before your driving assessment,
so you can inspect most of the streets where you might be going through. Without a proper warm-up,
it'll be a lot more difficult to pass. As you notice, there are lots of roundabouts here. Ensure
that you don't let something slip your eye. Always anticipate from the distance. If you're in doubt,
don't proceed. Most streets when you get off William Street would be 50 zones. So if you don't
see any signs, just keep it a maximum 50, and of course, if it's a school zone or road works,
you would have to adhere to the speed limit that's current at that time on that particular
road. A significant number of candidates fail for speeding, especially on the road like this one.
It's wide, there's no traffic, it's very easy to go over the speed limit unless you focus,
so you gotta focus. Another roundabout, this one we can see everything from the distance so
you can prepare early. Don't forget to indicate when exiting roundabouts. A lot of experienced
drivers who are going for the C manual class, upgrading from an automatic licence would fail
because they gained a lot of bad habits such as not indicating. So, think of it as courtesy, you
would have to let other road users know what your intentions are. You have to do it even if there's
no one there at the time. It's very unlikely, but it is possible that the examiner will ask
you to reverse parallel park at Cannington. Never hope that they're not going to ask you
to do reverse parallel parking. It's, it's really good skill to know, and it's not that difficult.
In my opinion, it's easier than the normal reverse bay parking other than the fact that you will have
to check frequently the traffic that's coming from behind, which is what freaks people out the most.
Check out some of our videos on reverse sparking. I'll put them in the description of this video.
If you're not satisfied with the result, you can always repeat your reverse parallel parking.
People often ask us, what about if the assessor is not happy with me or repeating it? Just do it
anyway and see how they react. They can ask you to do the exercise left something behind anywhere
around here, or other parts of Cannington, Queen's Park, Beckenham, even Kenvick, so just be prepared
that, you know, when they ask you to pull over on the side of the road just inspect everything. Now,
where this road works, you've got to understand that you can't go slightly above the speed
limit. I know that a lot of people that watch this video now will still fail for speeding,
especially through the road works or school zones. But I can tell you that a lot of candidates who
fail for some strange reason always say that they didn't think it's that strict. I can tell you now,
it is that strict. If there's a vehicle sticking out on the road like this, you've got to make
sure that you give way to people from the opposite direction. Otherwise, the assessor will intervene
and fail you on the spot. If you're taking your manual driving assessment, this is where you may
need to use your handbrake to do a hill-start. This is probably the steepest spot in the area.
Just make sure that your car doesn't roll backwards. When the driver in front of you clears,
ensure that you completely stop and then proceed when it's safe to do so. Be sure to check a few
videos on this topic on this channel. Be aware of your flow as well, so if you have a safe gap,
you should take it. So don't wait if it's not absolutely necessary to wait. This can take a
lot of practice to understand when you can go and when you should wait, so your best investment is
proper driving lessons when it comes to passing your driving test. Another roundabout and this
bridge is 50 kilometres an hour speed limit. So be aware of the speed limits. A lot of people,
when they get to the top of the bridge, when they start to go downhill, they go 60 or even 65. We
had a lot of rapports that candidates speed here. I can't stress enough how important it is to visit
the area, practice with your driving instructor and be familiar with streets, especially days
leading to a driving test. Now we're approaching a relatively narrow roundabout. It's pretty easy
one because you can see everything from the distance. So you can plan your moves before you
even get close to the roundabout. See, the white car is shielding us. Even if the first black car
went straight through, we can still proceed from here because they are waiting for the white car
that's coming from their right-hand side. So this is why roundabouts are so good. They keep the
flow of traffic, and they are maintenance-free. What do you think about Cannington driving test
area? Do you find it difficult, confusing? Is it easier than Mirrabooka or Kelmscott? Let me know,
and feel free to ask any questions in the comments section below. We are just behind Carousel
shopping centre. If you come around here, they may ask you to do reverse parallel parking. If you
attempt to do reverse parallel parking, you can't really sit down and sort of have a cappuccino,
you know, you've got to think quick, you've got to start your manoeuvre quickly without too much
delay because there's so many cars coming from behind, especially in the afternoon hours this can
be packed. Every single action that you take, from the time you start the engine on to the time you
switch the engine off, counts. Don't get carried away, don't celebrate too early. For example,
if you feel that you're doing really well, don't make any analysis because, obviously, that's going
to take your mind off what you're doing, and that way, you are more likely to make some unexpected
mistakes. In this pocket around Carousel shopping centre, you have to watch out for pedestrians.
There are a few bus stops as well, so people are getting off and on, so you have to keep
your eyes open. It's good to slow down a little bit when passing buses because you can always
expect pedestrians in the close proximity from parked buses. This is the third roundabout in
this area. Clearly, quite a few roundabouts. We're approaching a pedestrian crossing, and obviously,
there's a pedestrian, and in this particular situation, it's good to slow down a bit early
so we can keep the flow. Don't edge inside of the pedestrian crossing while the pedestrian is still
inside of the actual zebra. Now we have a roundabout that's got two lanes, but a lot
of people get confused here because both lanes can turn right. So the left lane is going left,
straight and right, and the right lane is going only right. So we've got to give way because a
lot of people don't understand the concept of this particular roundabout. I saw quite a few
narrow misses because a lot of times, people that are in the right lane that couldn't go straight
would proceed straight, and as a result, you might be in the middle of their path. So it's
best to judge their speed and their intentions before you are too deep inside of the roundabout.
In the test, the assessor will expect you to avoid any type of collision at any cost. Even if it's
somebody else's fault. Now we're only a few meters away from the busiest street on this test route.
So this is Albany Highway. Visibly, there are two turning lanes. So always end up in the left lane
unless you know that you're going to be turning right shortly after you make this left turn. Even
if you were turning right, you would line up into the left turning lane for right unless you know,
again, that you were turning right shortly after. When you turn left here there's a bus stop on the
left-hand side which is clearly painted red. So don't get stranded in there, allowing traffic to
pass you on the right-hand side, in which case you would have an extra task, and at best, you
will lose points for flow. So don't do unnecessary things. We're coming back to the car park of the
licensing centre at Cannington. Corner of Albany Highway and William Street. So here we've got a
separate lane, so there's no merging here. The first car park on our left-hand side is our
destination. Do not make any analysis before you switch off the engine. A lot of people fail right
here, believe it or not. There's a solid unbroken double white line which you should not step on.
People who step on that line will fail here on the spot. A bit harsh, I know, but they do fail people
right here, so I would hate to say I told you so if you ever speak to me. 99 per cent of times,
you'll be turning right here unless the car park is full. So then they would take you potentially
to the overflow car park, which is on the left-hand side. There's also a pedestrian
crossing if you're turning right here, which you would have seen just a moment ago, and now the
assessor usually asks you to park somewhere. They rarely specify how. Pick the easiest spot, and
don't travel too far. Now be aware that somebody might be opening the door. We have people who fail
even here in the last seconds. I'm parking next to the white Ford Mondeo, so I'm going to watch the
driver's door. I think there's a driver sitting behind the wheel in that car. If you're benefiting
from any of my content, I would love to hear about your success. As always, please feel free to
ask any questions in the comments section below. Thanks for watching, and I'll catch you next time.