Shoulder Checking and the Road Test

This concerns "mirror checking" and "shoulder checking" in the Class 7 and Class 5 road tests in British Columbia.  It addresses how ICBC's head office directs its road test examiners to mark.

It assumes that all windows and mirrors provide a clear view, and that the mirrors are correctly adjusted.  Though it applies to all drivers in general, the importance of what follows increases significantly if the driver is wearing sunglasses or prescription glasses.

The comment does not pertain to backing (reversing) maneuvers.

Is it true I can fail the test on shoulder checking, but not on mirror checking?
During road tests, shoulder checking is extremely important.  Failing a road test due to lack of shoulder checking is common, whereas failing due to lack of mirror checking is almost unheard of.

Is this the way it should be?
No, of course not.  It makes no sense that a person can pass a road test without ever checking a mirror, even once.

But the ICBC people who developed the tests have an explanation.  In fairness, examiners can't mark a person reliably for failing to mirror check because they can't be completely sure if the mirror(s) were seen, while if the driver didn't turn his head, then conclusively a shoulder check was not done. However, that perfectly valid point has been twisted into what we have today...
"Unmarkable" has turned into "unnecessary."

Examiners should not be implying, by omission, that mirrors should not be used.  Yet this is exactly what's happening daily, and it's dangerous advice.  What examiners say should not be different from what's in ICBC teaching materials such as the Tuning Up manual and the RoadSense for Drivers manual (Safe Driving Guide).

So, what are they saying?
Examiners say "you have to signal and shoulder check" (sometimes the order is reversed, but the impression is given that mirror checking is unnecessary).  Proof of this can be seen at icbc.com in the RoadSense Examiners' Tips (videos of examiners teaching driving procedures).  Several tips from a variety of examiners show this being done.

Most people hearing this from an examiner will interpret it in one of two ways, both of which are dangerous: (a) that drivers need only be concerned about vehicles in the blind spot, which ignores the risk of vehicles coming up quickly from behind that will not be detected with a shoulder check alone; or (b) that drivers should turn all the way around and look all the way back, which increases the risk of not seeing a hazard ahead.

Okay, then what is a shoulder check?
In its teaching materials, ICBC does say that mirrors need to be used before a change of direction, to see what's coming up quickly from behind.  It teaches that a shoulder check must also be done to catch the area the mirrors can't cover -- the "blind spot" -- about forty-five degrees over the driver's shoulder (not all the way back). In other words, a shoulder check alone, all by itself, would not be enough, because viewing just the blind spot area without also checking farther back in the mirror(s) would be inadequate.

While it's completely accurate that a shoulder check catches what the mirror(s) can't, the reverse is equally true.  Mirrors catch what the shoulder check can't.  Both are easily demonstrated.

I always thought the shoulder check was the "real check."
Unfortunately, some people tell you that shoulder checking is, in the end, the "real check" -- that a driver always needs to "turn around and really look."  In general, this will only be true in situations when your car is not parallel with the traffic -- meaning that if your car is at an angle instead of straight, the mirrors don't show the normal view.

What about the shoulder check before a right turn after stopping?
Before making a right turn when the car is moving very slowly, or is stopped, the driver has to check to be sure no bicycle or jogger is catching up on the right side.  Again, the same advice applies -- you should never just check the blind spot.  You should always mirror check first.  In this case the right side mirror is very helpful.

The check for bicycles and joggers should not be the final check.  Traffic movement often changes very suddenly, even while a driver is in mid-turn, so the bicycle and jogger check should not be the final check.

What about checking before turning left?
Before making a left turn, the driver should check to make sure a vehicle is not passing.  If the vehicle is gaining quickly from behind or in the next lane, the shoulder check alone will not pick up the passing vehicle, but the mirror(s) will.  But if there is a jogger or cyclist catching up from the left rear (near or on the far sidwalk) only the shoulder check will pick that up, because it is in the blind spot.  Again, the same advice applies -- you should never just check the blind spot.

What about when I open my door?
Not only should a driver check for traffic, but a fast-moving cyclist going downhill might not even be detected at all with a shoulder check alone, depending on the cyclist's direction of approach.  The risk is much worse if the vehicle parked directly behind is a vision blocker, such as a van.  (With a van parked behind your car, you can see much farther back in the left side mirror than by turning your head. Try it and see. The difference is huge.)

What could examiners do differently?
Any time an examiner explains marking a person for failing to (signal and) shoulder check, the examiner could say, "We recommend you check the mirrors first to see behind, then signal, then shoulder check.  But we only marked you for (the signal and) the shoulder check."

In summary
As taught in ICBC materials, shoulder checking should be a blind spot check, covering the area the mirror(s) do not cover.  Instead, as currently marked in road tests, and as taught by some driving schools because driving schools "teach to the test," shoulder checking without mirror checking may seem to be acceptable.  If anyone is learning to drive and is being told by anybody to just "shoulder check" without checking the mirrors, they should be aware of how poor that advice is.

NOTE -
The information above is intended to clarify a topic which many learner drivers find confusing. Select Driving School assumes no responsibility for any misinterpretation or misapplication of the above procedures by persons accessing this material.