Introduction

The car, society and the driving licence

The car gives great freedom and is part of everyday life for most people. At the same time, it demands a lot from you as a driver: traffic changes all the time, and mistakes can have serious consequences. The goal of driver training is for you to become a safe, independent and considerate driver who safeguards your own and others' health and the environment.

Freedom, downsides and responsibility

The car makes work, leisure and family life easier, especially where public transport is limited. The same freedom has a cost: noise, congestion, emissions, land use and crashes also affect people who are not in the car. The driver's role is therefore about more than arriving; you must choose a way of driving that others can live safely around.

Theory makes practice safer

You do not learn to drive a car by reading alone, but theory gives you a map before you meet the situation. If you already know what a give-way line means, why high speed increases risk, and how other road users may misunderstand you, the driving lesson can be used for judgement and interaction instead of guessing.

What is a driving licence?

The driving licence is proof that you have the right to drive a particular group of vehicles. The right is divided into classes according to vehicle type and weight. For cars, Class B applies.

Driving licence classes

What does Class B cover?

• Motor vehicle with permitted maximum weight not exceeding 3 500 kg.
• Room for no more than 8 passengers in addition to the driver.
• Trailer with permitted maximum weight not exceeding 750 kg – or a heavier trailer as long as the car and trailer together do not exceed 3 500 kg.
• Class B also gives you the right to ride a moped.

Example of a Norwegian driving licence, Class B.

It is the combined weight of car and trailer that decides whether Class B is enough.

Permitted maximum weight: The highest weight the vehicle may legally have with load and passengers, stated in the vehicle registration certificate.

Requirements for obtaining Class B

To obtain a Class B driving licence, you must meet some basic requirements and pass both a theory test and a practical test at Statens vegvesen.

Basic requirements

• Be 18 years old (you can start practice driving from age 16).
• Have sufficiently good health and eyesight – you complete a self-declaration of health, and your eyesight is tested.
• Be sober and otherwise fit to drive a motor vehicle.
• Have completed the basic traffic course before you start practice driving.

Practice driving

You can practise driving privately or at a driving school. During private practice driving, the accompanying driver must be at least 25 years old, have held a Class B driving licence continuously for at least 5 years, and sit so that she or he has control over the driving at all times.

The accompanying driver counts as the driver – the requirements, including the alcohol limit, apply to both.

Choose the practice area according to level

Good practice starts simple and gradually becomes more demanding. The first drives belong in quiet areas where you can practise starting, stopping, gears, steering and observation without creating pressure for others. Later, practice moves to residential areas, rural roads, urban traffic, darkness and difficult weather. This gives you mileage without learning panic habits.

Move practice up a level only once the technique is stable – otherwise you learn panic habits.

• The car must have an “L” sign clearly visible at the rear.
• The accompanying driver is considered the driver and is responsible for the driving.
• You cannot practise driving if your right to drive has been seized or revoked.

Probation period after the driving test

When you obtain a Class B licence for the first time, you have a two-year probation period. The point is that new drivers have a higher risk and must show that they can drive consistently over time. Serious offences during the probation period can mean stricter consequences and a requirement for a new test before your right to drive is restored.

Accompanying driver: The person who sits next to you and is responsible during private practice driving. Regarded as the driver in the legal sense.

The car must display the “L” sign clearly visible at the rear during practice driving.

How driver training is structured

Training follows a fixed curriculum divided into four stages. The idea is that you build competence step by step: from mastering the car itself, to mastering interaction in traffic and understanding your own risk.

The order matters. Before you can read complex traffic, vehicle handling must be so automatic that you have spare attention. Before you can drive far and independently, you need experience with risk, speed adaptation and how your choices affect others.

While the car demands everything you have, little attention is left for the traffic.

The four stages

• Stage 1 – Basic traffic course: basic traffic understanding, first aid and night driving.
• Stage 2 – Basic vehicle and driving competence: mastering the car technically, without too much traffic.
• Stage 3 – Traffic part: driving independently in varied traffic. Ends with a guidance lesson.
• Stage 4 – Final training: safety course on a track and safety course on the road, with emphasis on risk understanding.

Compulsory courses in stage 4

• Safety course on a track (“slippery driving”): you experience how speed, road conditions and securing affect control of the car.
• Safety course on the road: a longer drive where you practise driving efficiently, in an eco-friendly way and with good risk understanding.