How Long Does It Take to Become Proficient at Driving?
2 Answers
Everyone has different innate conditions and levels of effort. Some people can start driving the corresponding vehicle on the road from the day they get their driver's license. Generally, there won't be any major issues. Driving on city roads, as driving time accumulates, various safety operations gradually become instinctive reactions. It can take as short as a month or as long as a year to reach a proficient level of driving. Familiarize yourself with the basic performance of your daily driving vehicle, including emergency braking at high speeds, rapid acceleration at various basic speeds, braking on slippery surfaces, and the maximum safe speed on wet roads. Understand the vehicle's limits to ensure you can make judgments in dangerous situations: Assess whether the vehicle's current state has sufficient capability to avoid collisions; develop basic safety awareness, including perception of the vehicle ahead, anticipation of lateral vehicle movements, understanding the space required for your vehicle's limit lane changes, checking the inner (outer) rearview mirror during emergency braking to ensure safety behind, and frequently checking the rearview mirror.
When I first started learning to drive, just a year ago, I thought I could get the hang of it in a few days, but it actually took me three to four months to feel steady. At the beginning, I practiced three times a week, one or two hours each time, driving back and forth near the neighborhood. I would panic at complex intersections, even fumbling with gear shifts. Later, I added city driving lessons and gradually adapted to traffic speed and rule judgment. Looking back now, you need at least 100 hours of practice before hitting the highway—start with simpler routes first. New drivers often overlook safe distances and emergency braking, so it’s good to simulate unexpected situations in empty lots with fewer people. I recommend focusing on basic operations for the first three months, then integrating into traffic flow in the following months. This step-by-step approach ensures safety and saves time. Remember, driving proficiency is a gradual process—don’t rush progress and neglect details, or small mistakes can snowball into big problems.
