Driving Tips – POM

 

Prepare, Observe, Move

 
You might be familiar with the Prepare, Observe, Move, routine (POM) – which is commonly used by instructors to help learners master the skills needed to move off safely.
 
By the time that you take your driving test you should easily be able to move off safely but despite this, moving off safely is currently the 2nd most common reason for driving test failure – with moving off under control coming in at No. 9!
 
 

 
 

What’s going on!

 
Given that moving off is a fairly basic skill why are people failing the test for not doing it safely or under control?
 
The answer is perhaps to do with the things you concentrate on when being tested. Most people probably move off OK at the start but let things slip when the moving off is before or after something else.

 
 

 
 
For example, if you are asked to do a left reverse the examiner will explain the manoeuvre while you are parked on the left before the corner – when you move off you might be concentrating more on the manoeuvre that you are about to do rather than on moving off safely.
 
The same applies before and after all manoeuvres.
 
 

 
 
The examiner will ask you to pull up several times during the test, this could be before manoeuvres, to test your hill-start skills or simply to test your moving-off and stopping skills.
 
Make sure that you focus on your POM routine every time you move off, not just at the start of the test.
 
 

POM in Moving Off and Stopping
 

 
 
POM in Parallel Park
 

 
 

Here’s a reminder…

Prepare

 
Before starting the engine you must normally make sure that the handbrake is on and that the gear lever is in the neutral position.
 

• Clutch down, select first gear.
• Press the gas pedal gently and hold it still (‘set the gas’).

 
Bring the clutch pedal up to ‘biting point’ (this is the point at which the engine sound changes) and keep both feet still. The car is now ready to move off but you must first make sure that the road is clear and it is safe to move.
 

Observe

 
 

 
 

• Check your mirrors and blind spots.
• Take special care when signalling your intention to others.

 
If you are about to do a manoeuvre, move off at an angle or move off up a hill you might need a bigger gap in the traffic than usual.
 

Move

 
 

 
 

• Release the handbrake.
• Bring the clutch up gently and when the car moves hold both feet still.
• Turn the steering wheel slightly and move out to the ‘safety line’.
• Gently increase the pressure on the gas pedal and bring the clutch up fully.