Driver’s Ed

We are sadly counting down the days that our US driver’s licenses are valid here in Holland. Being car dependent once again, Dan has enrolled in driver’s education classes, willingly subjecting himself to learning a litany of rules and regulations (most of which are not followed by most drivers, according to my observations), berating from the instructor (You’re too close to the center line! You didn’t check your five points! You shifted too slowly!), and taking a series of exams (how many, nobody knows). It’ll be my turn if a) I find the courage and b) We don’t go broke paying for Dan’s.

I have been reading the textbook, though, from time to time. Here’s what I’ve learned:
-A horseback rider is a driver. So is a leader of horses or cattle.
-A tractor is a motor vehicle, but a tram is a tram.
-An invalid carriage is not wider than 1.1 meters, but a four-wheel moped is wider that 1.1 meters. Both can only go 45 km/h.
-You must go “dead slow” in an erf.
-The bike path is an official part of the road.

Some of the material is similar to what I learned when I was 15, but some is entirely different, especially those rules related to energy conservation, such as:
-You should not drive with your windows down, because it uses more petrol.
-You must turn off your car if idling for more than 20 seconds.

Then there are the safety rules. Some I don’t understand why they have to be said, some I agree with, and some I don’t:
-Joy-riding is a crime.
-Holding a mobile telephone while driving is illegal.
-Putting a baby in an infant seat in the front seat of a car is permitted (if the air bag is turned off).

I looked quickly for a picture of an invalid carriage on the web, but I couldn’t find one. I’ll keep looking…however, I did find something from the Wikipedia library. Check out the picture.