Learn to drive
Hi everyone! This blog was created as an avenue for me to share my personal experiences learning driving at BBDC so that you can also get your licence as quick as possible 🙂
A little background about myself:
I registered my BBDC account end November 2022 for Class 3 licence (manual driving) , started my first practical lesson early January 2023 and passed my Class 3 driving test on the 8th March 2023. Pretty fast right? heh
In this blog, I’ll be passing on my knowledge as well as tips and tricks to help YOU get your licence at a similarly quick pace (2-3 months) 😀
First, a summary of the requirements to register for driving test if you are a BBDC student:
- BTL/FTL
- BTE/BTT
- FTE/FTT
- 1x DS/ 3x TPDS
- Risk Forecast Lesson (PPL 5.01)
- Cleared 4.01/4.02
- 1x Auto Car lesson (For Class 3 manual learners)
Note: As these are requirements, you HAVE to clear all of these in order to book your driving test. There are optional things as well such as the Basic/Final Theory Practice as well as revision lessons before your test which I did not include.
Basic Theory Lessons (BTL) & Final Theory Lessons (FTL)
Mandatory so just clear them. There’s only 4 online lessons, each lasting 1 hour and they go through content from the handbooks (I’ve attached them below)
Basic Theory Evaluation (BTE) and Basic Theory Test (BTT)
Make sure you go for at least 1 Basic Theory Practice before going for BTE so you can have a rough feel of the questions. Once you pass BTE, you can then go for BTT. Once you clear BTT, go to the police website and register for a e-PDL so you can start your practical lessons!
Resources: The holy grail OR https://www.tptest.sg/
Final Theory Evaluation (FTE) and Final Theory Test (FTT)
I would personally recommend going for 2-3 Final Theory Practices before your FTE because you wouldn’t want to waste time having to retake FTE.
You can take your FTE/FTT concurrently as you take practical lessons but just ensure you clear FTT before you reach stage 4 of your practical lessons. You’ll need it to book your driving test.
Driving Simulator (DS) / Traffic Police Driving Simulator (TPDS)
DS is required by BBDC, a simple lesson conducted in groups of 3 where you’ll get to experience driving an auto car in different weather conditions
TPDS is required by the police, you’ll have to go through it 3 times and similarly, it is a driving simulator that puts you through various dangerous situations a driver may face.
Note: There are no pass/fail criteria for these, you just have to attend them.
Also, bookings for TPDS is extremely hard to come by, so check the BBDC website frequently to watch out for open slots.
Risk forecast lesson
Another short zoom lesson educating you about the various risks when you are on the road.
Auto car lesson (For manual learners only)
Same as your normal practical lessons, just that you’ll be in an auto car instead. You’ll have to do some tasks but just follow the instructor and you’ll be fine.
Practical Lessons
The bread and butter of your driving journey.
General guideline is that for auto learners, you’ll need about 18-20 lessons total and for manual learners, 23-25 lessons total to cover everything in the driving handbook (see below).
Tip: To avoid waiting for months before your first practical, whenever you have about 2-3 minutes, continuously refresh your BBDC website every few seconds and its highly likely you’ll see a slot pop up as someone has just cancelled their lesson. I personally got all my lessons this way, which is why I got my licence in only 2 months.
As for the driving part, don’t stress too much about it and driving will come naturally. For me, I only managed to perfect my clutch usage after 10 lessons so don’t worry if you struggle a little when you first start. Practice makes perfect!
That’s about all there is! All the best 😀
Related posts:
BBDC Driver 