Moving off and stopping, step by step
Join the traffic without making anyone change speed or direction, then stop in a place that is safe and suitable.
Prepare without allowing movement
Set the correct gear or selector position and prepare the controls while the car remains secure. On a hill, understand the parking brake or hill-hold procedure for your car so it cannot roll as you prepare to move.
Observe, then decide
Check the road ahead, mirrors and blind spots, including beside the car. Look for people walking past and cyclists approaching. Signal if it would help someone and would not mislead them. A signal is not a request that others must obey.
Move when the opportunity is still safe
Make a final effective check and move smoothly into a suitable position. If you have waited since checking, look again. Do not swing out too far to avoid a parked car or accelerate into a gap that makes approaching traffic brake.
Plan the stop before reaching it
Choose a lawful place with a good view, clear of crossings, junctions and obstructions. Check mirrors, signal if useful and brake progressively. Bring the car close enough to the kerb without striking it, stop smoothly and secure it.
Prepare, observe, decide, move. If the situation changes, make a new decision.
What would you do in these situations?
Read the situation, decide on an action, then compare it with the explanation.
Your blind-spot check was clear, but you then waited for a car to pass.
What to do
Check again before releasing the car to move.
Why it matters
A cyclist or pedestrian may have entered the space during the wait. Observation has to match the moment of movement.
You are asked to stop, but the first available gap is beside a crossing.
What to do
Continue safely to a suitable place.
Why it matters
An instruction to stop when convenient leaves you responsible for choosing the location.
Manual and automatic: what changes?
Manual car
Coordinate clutch and accelerator for a smooth move-off, releasing the parking brake only when the car is controlled. On stopping, use the clutch as needed to avoid stalling, not to coast towards the kerb.
Automatic car
Hold the brake while selecting the correct direction. Release the parking brake as required and ease the footbrake only when safe to move. Use gentle accelerator input if needed; creep or hill-hold behaviour is vehicle-specific.
The observations and decision to move safely apply to both. Learn the controls for your particular car with your instructor.
How is a hill start different?
The extra task is keeping the car still until you are ready to go. Prepare the controls with the car secured, make effective observations, and release the holding brake only when you can move forward under control. Do not rush the final check because you have found the biting point.
In a manual, practise coordinating the clutch, accelerator and parking brake with your instructor. In an automatic, learn how that car’s brake, creep and hill-hold systems behave. Hill hold is not a reason to assume the car cannot roll. If the gap disappears, keep the car secure and begin the observation decision again.
Do I need to check again after waiting to move off?
Yes. A clear blind spot a few seconds ago may no longer be clear. Keep the car secure while you wait, then make a fresh check before moving. Preparing the pedals does not commit you to going.
Watch the decisions in 3D
Choose the situation you want to understand. In the learning area, you can replay the steps, change the view and answer the lesson questions. The demonstrations are slowed teaching sequences, not real-time speed or pedal-pressure guides.
Move away, then stop on the left
Prepare the car, check around it, move into the lane and stop beside the kerb without rushing.
Open this demonstrationMove off uphill without rolling back
Keep the car held on the slope until it is ready to move. Compare manual and automatic controls.
Open this demonstrationUse this before or after a driving lesson
Work through the explanation away from the road. In the car, practise with your instructor or a suitable supervising driver. Reading a guide or completing a quiz records understanding, not a practical driving assessment.
Your quizzes and study progress stay in the learning area. For the wider sequence, return to the practical driving curriculum.