The application process to upgrade your licence to a PSV is similar to the car test. First, you have to apply for your Provisional licence. Because you’ll be in charge of people you must meet the high medical standards which are where the similarity between car and bus tests ends. Your eyesight must be of a high standard; you cannot have any heart defects or brain injuries and will be asked to take a drugs test. This is done by either the company doctor or your own Doctor and they must complete form D4. This is sent together with your provisional application. Some companies accept penalty points especially speeding in light of the itchy camera’s scattered around the UK but the easiest way to avoid speed cameras is to stick to the prescribed limit. A ‘momentary lack of concentration’ could kill 90 people.  Drink/drug driving convictions are totally unacceptable to all companies.
 
You must complete the Theory Test before booking the practical. Some companies refuse to allow trainees on the road until they have actually passed the Theory test but I think this can be obstructive to the learner. Practical driving can open the mind to more of the Theory test questions, simply from driving around. It is easier to notice a 14’6 sign on a railway bridge in a bus than it is in a classroom! With an instructor by your side a practical drive can assist the learner more than sitting in front of a computer or reading a very thick book! Even the DSA (Driving Standards Agency) recommend that you drive a large vehicle before taking the theory test.
 
I read the Theory Test book when it came out, updated my Highway Code every year and read all of the manuals on the market to assist my driving career. I gave up driving a year ago and decided to sit the ‘mock’ test online at the DSA website a few weeks ago. I am proud to say I passed with 32 out of 35. Once the knowledge is there, it is there to stay. Even though I am not driving PSVs I stay on top of the changes in the law. Holding the licence without driving doesn’t mean I can let my knowledge slip. It makes me a better car driver as well. Learning about large vehicles can give you a new perspective, so if you husband/wife/lover or brother is bitching about ‘that f**king bus driver cut me up on the High Street’, treat them to a day on a track in a bus. It will change their attitude forever!
 
The standards are always improving, which can only be a good thing. In the next couple of years there are plans to introduce a CPC for drivers. The Certificate of Professional Competence will have to be taken/refreshed every five years although GoSkills seem to think that this is almost impossible to achieve because we do not have the infrastructure to cope with the training needs. Up until now the only refresher was at age 45 and every five years after that until 65, then it’s yearly, but now, all drivers will be subject to this test in order to keep their licence. This includes me. Even though I don’t drive, I want to retain my licence so will undertake the course. I can see it being a little patronising and possibly even pointless but it will be law and instructor training schools will hopefully pop up all over the country if the DSA let the monopoly go. Maybe its time I made myself an instructor!