Looking for lessons in Southend-on-Sea?
Southend-on-Sea most popular areas include:__
Basildon, Corringham, Eastwood, Hadleigh, Leigh-on-Sea, Rayleigh, Rochford, Southchurch, Stanford-le-Hope, Westcliff-on-Sea.
Enter your postcode above to check lesson pricing in your local area of Southend-on-Sea.
View other guides: Driving Lessons in London, Driving Lessons in Birmingham, Driving Lessons in Manchester.
Learning to drive in Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea has the world’s longest pleasure pier, but you’ll have even more fun learning to drive (we promise)!
There are plenty of quiet residential streets for you to start out on. Eagleway, for example, makes a good loop on which you can get accustomed to driving. With fewer cars around there’s less pressure, so it’ll be easier to get to grips with gear changes, steering, stopping, and moving off.
Picasso Way is another good starting area, but soon you’ll want to get accustomed to bigger challenges. The A127 is the best road for dual carriageway practice, stretching all the way to the edge of London and the M25. If your test is at Basildon Test Centre then you’ll want to be doubly sure you get some experience on it, as it’s very close to the test centre.
If you head north, away from the seafront, you’ll find an array of country lanes spreading towards the River Roach. They’re great for testing your hazard perception. Barling Road, for example, is a snaking lane with tall leaning trees and hedges - making for blind bends and poor visibility. If you can master your nerves on these roads your test will be a cinch!
Make sure that you do a fair amount of practice round your test centre location, as knowing these roads inside out will have you well-placed to drive safely and confidently on the day of your practical driving test and beyond.
Manual and automatic driving lessons
Whether you’re after manual or automatic driving lessons in Southend-on-Sea, we’ve got your back.
Choosing between manual and automatic driving lessons can be tricky. Before you make your decision, it’s important to know that an automatic driving licence will only qualify you to drive an automatic car, whereas a manual licence will qualify you to drive either transmission. Automatic lessons also tend to be pricier as there are fewer instructors around and so a greater demand.
You might want to think about where you’ll be driving in Southend. If you’re planning on driving during rush hour, an automatic could be easier for you as you won’t have to worry about changing gears during a traffic jam. However, if you’re on a budget, a manual car might be better, as they are generally cheaper than automatics. The choice is yours!
Driving test centre locations
When the time’s right, your driving instructor will help you pick a test centre. They’ll get you learning all the right routes to make sure you’re 100% ready for the big day. There are two test centres in the Southend postcode:
- Southend-on-Sea: The Tickfield Centre, Tickfield Industrial Estate, Tickfield Ave, Southend-on-Sea, Essex, SS2 6LL
- Basildon: Paycocke Road, Basildon, Essex, SS14 3JS