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Highway Code

Highway Code, Other information

Other information. Advisory guidance you are expected to follow.

  • Other information
  • Advisory rule
  • OGL v3.0

What the rule says

Advisory

Metric conversions

The conversions given throughout The Highway Code are rounded but a detailed conversion chart is shown below. Miles Kilometres Miles Kilometres 1.00 1.61 40.00 64.37 5.00 8.05 45.00 72.42 10.00 16.09 50.00 80.47 15.00 24.14 55.00 88.51 20.00 32.19 60.00 96.56 25.00 40.23 65.00 104.60 30.00 48.28 70.00 112.65 35.00 56.33

Useful websites

  • GOV.UK
  • St John Ambulance
  • St Andrew’s First Aid
  • British Red Cross
  • National Highways
  • Highways England
  • Transport Scotland
  • Transport Wales
  • Traffic England
  • Traffic Scotland
  • Traffic Wales
  • Road Safety GB
  • Ask the police: frequently asked questions database
  • Traffic Penalty Tribunal (outside London)
  • London Tribunals (inside London)
  • Traveline
  • European Commission – road safety abroad
  • European New Car Assessment Programme

Further reading

Best practice

Further information about good driving and riding practice can be found in the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency books ‘The Official DVSA Guide to Driving - the essential skills’ and ‘The Official DVSA Guide to Riding - the essential skills’. Information specifically for drivers of large vehicles can be found in ‘The Official DVSA Guide to Driving Goods Vehicles’.

The Blue Badge Scheme

Get information about the Blue Badge Scheme from your council.

Code of Practice for Horse-Drawn Vehicles

The Code of Practice is available from Department for Transport International Vehicle Standards Great Minster House 33 Horseferry Road London SW1P 4DR Tel 0300 330 3000

Special types of vehicles

Further information about the use of special types of vehicles under the authority of the Road Vehicles (Authorisation of Special Types) (General) Order 2003 (STGO) or Special Orders can be found in the Special types enforcement guide.

Towing

Further information about towing safely can be found at

  • Tow a trailer with a car: safety checks
  • Towing with a car
  • Requirements for towing trailers in Great Britain

Rule text reproduced verbatim from the official Highway Code (Crown copyright) under the Open Government Licence v3.0, see the attribution at the foot of this page.

In plain English

Stripped of the formal wording, this guidance comes down to one idea: the conversions given throughout The Highway Code are rounded but a detailed conversion chart is shown below. It is advice rather than law, but examiners and the courts still treat it as the expected standard of safe driving.

It belongs to the other information part of the Code, the habits a confident, considerate driver builds until they are automatic. The aim is not to memorise the sentence word for word, but to understand the hazard it protects you from, so you apply it without having to think when it counts.

If you are learning, treat this rule as one piece of a connected set rather than an isolated fact. The related rules below sit in the same section and reinforce each other, reading them together is how the other information part of the Code starts to feel like common sense rather than a list to revise.

Because this is advisory rather than legal, no one will fine you for the rule alone, but ignoring it can still count against you in a careless-driving case, and it will cost you faults on the test. Either way, the safe move is to build the habit early, while a driving instructor can correct it, rather than relearning it under test pressure. That is exactly what the practice routes and coaching in the DriveRoutes app are designed to help with, turning the rules below into the way you naturally drive.

Why this rule matters on the road

Following this rule keeps your driving predictable and safe, which is what every other road user is relying on. It is one small part of the habit-set that, taken together, prevents the everyday mistakes that cause collisions.

Common faults examiners record

In the other information part of the Code, the faults most often written on the marking sheet tend to be the same handful. Knowing them in advance is the quickest way to drive them out of your own habits:

  • Acting too late because the situation was read close rather than early.
  • Incomplete observation before committing to a manoeuvre.
  • An unsuitable speed for the road, the traffic or the conditions.

On the day

On the day, applying Highway Code, Other information is about doing the safe, deliberate thing slightly earlier than feels necessary: read the situation in good time, observe fully, and act smoothly. The examiner is looking for planned driving, not perfection, and good habits formed in lessons carry you through.

Quick checklist

  • Read the situation early and plan your response.
  • Observe fully before you commit to anything.
  • Keep your speed suitable for the road and conditions.

Highway Code, Other information, your questions

The conversions given throughout The Highway Code are rounded but a detailed conversion chart is shown below. It is advisory guidance rather than law, but you are still expected to follow it and an examiner can mark a fault if you do not.

DriveRoutes is an independent study aid and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).