A large-scale UK research project has found no evidence that voluntary safety interventions offered to learner and newly qualified drivers reduce collision rates in the first year after passing the driving test.

The results raise important questions about how best to improve road safety for young drivers.

It appears that mandatory additions to driver training may be the only effective way forward for road safety.

Greater insights

The Driver 2020 research project was commissioned by the Department for Transport (DfT) and carried out by the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL).

It examined whether a range of voluntary education and technology-based measures could lower crash risk among drivers aged 17 to 24, a group that remains disproportionately involved in road traffic collisions.

With the help of the driver training industry, the study recruited more than 28,000 learner and novice drivers across Great Britain and followed them through the learning process and their first year of independent driving.

Participating

Participants were split into two trial arms: one recruited at the start of learning to drive, and the other recruited immediately after passing the practical test.

Each arm included its own control group.

Upon joining the study, participants were randomly assigned to a control group or one of five intervention groups.

The interventions tested were telematics, use of a logbook, extra hazard perception training, classroom-based education, and mentoring agreements.

Those assigned to an intervention group were offered the opportunity to engage with the intervention voluntarily, but take-up was low.

The research was designed to reflect real-world conditions.

There were minimal or no incentives to encourage participation, mirroring how such schemes are typically offered outside of controlled trials.

Forcing change

The findings are clear: none of the interventions led to a reduction in self-reported collisions during the first 12 months of post-test driving.

Based on the trial sample, researchers concluded that offering these measures on a similar voluntary basis to young drivers across Great Britain would be unlikely to produce any measurable reduction in collision risk.

One key factor influencing the outcome was very low engagement with the interventions.

Only 3% of participants who were offered the logbook intervention reported using it, while telematics, the most popular option, achieved engagement from just 16% of those offered it.

Engagement with the remaining interventions was similarly limited.

Researchers say this suggests that relying solely on voluntary uptake of extra driver and road safety training schemes is unlikely to succeed as a strategy for reducing risk among newly qualified drivers.

Safer manoeuvres

However, interviews conducted as part of the study highlighted insights that could help improve future interventions.

Participants reported being more willing to engage with schemes they perceived as directly/ practically helpful to them.

Learner drivers prioritised tools that helped them pass the theory or practical test. In contrast, newly qualified drivers were more interested in support that helped them adjust to independent driving and focus on staying safe rather than simply passing.

A second recurring theme was the appeal of interventions that encouraged self-reflection, such as feedback on driving behaviour.

These findings from the  Driver 2020 project provide valuable evidence for policymakers and road safety professionals as they consider how best to address collision risk among young drivers, underlining the challenge of achieving meaningful change through voluntary measures alone.