Eco-driving during the driving test [video]

From January 1 of this year, during a practical road traffic test, candidate drivers must demonstrate knowledge of the principles of energy-efficient driving. Previous concerns turned out to be exaggerated, since the subjects had no problems with eco-driving.

The Minister of Infrastructure and Development, by order of May 9, 2014, changed the rules for conducting the state exam for categories B, B+E, C1, C1+E, C, C+E, D1, D1+E, D and D+E. This is a practical part in road traffic, during which the driver candidate must demonstrate the ability for energy-efficient driving, also known as eco-driving.

The regulation came into force on January 1, 2015, but before that it caused a lot of doubts among many students who feared that the examiners would use this provision to “fill up” a driver candidate. In addition, some instructors and driving school owners have suggested that the new exam requirements will make it even more difficult to qualify, resulting in fewer applicants for their courses. However, does the new regulation really mean that fewer and fewer people are taking the practical part of the state exam?

Energy efficient driving, i.e. proper gear shifting and engine braking

Since this beginning of the year, two additional tasks related to eco-driving have appeared on the examiners' sheets: “Correct gear shifting” and “Engine braking when stopping and braking”. However, there is an exception. “People who passed the state theoretical tests before the end of 2014 do not count the new tasks,” explains Krzysztof Wujcik, acting head of the training department of the Voivodship Traffic Center in Warsaw.

For categories B and B + E, the examiner's first task is to upshift when the engine reaches 1800-2600 rpm. In addition, the first four gears must be engaged before the vehicle reaches 50 km/h. For the other categories (C1, C1 + E, C, C + E, D1, D1 + E, D and D + E), the examiner must maintain the engine speed within the range marked green on the test vehicle's tachometer. .

The second task, that is, engine braking, applies to all of the above categories of driver's licenses. In this case, the idea is to slow down the car, for example when approaching a red light at an intersection, by taking your foot off the accelerator and downshifting with engine torque. “When it comes to shifting gears at the right engine speed, students have no serious problems with this,” says Piotr Rogula, owner of a driving school in Kielce. “But the practice of downshift braking is already a problem for some. Some people press the brake and clutch at the same time before the red light, others switch to neutral, which will be regarded as a mistake during the exam, Piotr Rogula warns.

Eco driving is not so bad

Despite initial concerns, the introduction of eco-driving elements did not noticeably affect the speed of passing practical tests in road traffic. “Until now, no one has “failed” for this reason,” says Lukasz Kucharski, director of the Voivodship Traffic Center in Lodz. – I am not surprised by this situation, because driving schools have always taught eco-driving, caring for your cars and fuel costs. It should also be remembered that the table already contained a task on the principles of driving technique, so the introduction of the requirement for energy-efficient driving from January 1, 2015 is only a refinement of the skills already required for the exam, adds the director of WORD Łódź.

According to Lukasz Kucharski, who is also president of the National Association of Directors of Provincial Traffic Centers, even if someone exceeds the required turnover range once or twice, he should not be held responsible. - Traffic, especially in large agglomerations, can be very intense. Remember that during the exam, driving fluency is also assessed, and this is often associated, for example, with efficient lane changes, emphasizes the head of Łódź WORD.

Also in other centers, the newly introduced tasks do not cause problems for candidates. – Between January 1 and March 22, 2015, there was not a single event that would lead to a negative result in the practical exam due to non-use of energy efficient driving, reports Slawomir Malinowski from WORD Warsaw. The situation is no different in the examination centers in Słupsk and Rzeszów. - So far, not a single driver candidate has failed the practical part of the traffic due to non-compliance with the principles of eco-driving. According to our employees, most people are good at changing gears at the right time and with engine braking,” says Zbigniew Wiczkowski, director of the Voivodship Traffic Center in Słupsk. Janusz Stachowicz, deputy director of WORD in Rzeszow, has a similar opinion. “We have not yet had such a case, which may indicate that the driver training centers properly prepare students for driving according to the principles of eco-driving.