According to a new ICBC survey conducted by Ipsos, 59% of B.C. drivers surveyed said parallel parking was the most difficult maneuver to learn when they started to drive and even today, 41% of drivers say they avoid parallel parking when possible.
The survey also shows that 35% of respondents found backing into a parking stall the second most difficult maneuver to learn and 20% avoid it all together if they can now. Finally, 26% of respondents ranked merging onto a highway as the third most challenging maneuver to learn but only 6% avoid highway merging now when possible.
When it comes down to overall driving skill, 68% of B.C. drivers surveyed rated their driving skills as excellent but were critical of other drivers’ skills with 33% of respondents stating that other drivers have poor driving skills.
The survey also showed the top three ranked actions that B.C. drivers surveyed feel other drivers most need to improve on: leaving enough following distance (58%), followed by giving other drivers space when merging onto a highway (47%) and coming to a complete stop at a stop sign (36%).
“For some of us, it may be decades since we learned to drive and our road test is a distant memory in the rear view mirror,” said Jerry Boal, ICBC driver licensing office manager. “We’re here to offer a refresher and share tips to help drivers feel more confident with certain maneuvers such as parallel parking and reversing into a parking stall. These are important skills for drivers to have and it’s never too late to improve.”
