A few weeks back I enrolled in an autoescuela (driving school). It has the unlikely name of “Racing School” (something you’re not likely to be doing on the busy streets around here). Although I got my first driver’s licence 20 years ago, and have no demerits or anything…my Quebec licence is worth, um, nothing, here. Ironically, I can drive with it (and an international licence) for up to three (or six?) months, but after that I need a Spanish licence. And this means going to school — there’s no way around it.
And you can’t just flip through the rulebook (the one I have here is 350 pages!), take a theory exam and then take a driving exam. In California I did that all in one day, for something like $25. There’s no such thing as a learner’s licence here, either. Nope, you’ve got to spend a fortune (300-500 Euros at least in Barcelona) to enroll in a school, take some classes, and then you can do your theory exams. After that it’s into the car for practical sessions, until you’re ready for the practical (in-car) exam.
So tomorrow, I’m off to an intensive classroom session. 10am to 8pm, with two hours for lunch. Same again on Sunday. There goes my weekend (but better than another school, which insisted I spend three months on daily one-hour classes, slowly working through all the material). Hopefully this weekend will cram enough of the subtleties of speed limits for all vehicle types, all road types, the multitude of signs and road markings, the first aid rules, how many demerits you get for various offences, etc, so I can pass the theory exam in a few weeks.
Then I get to hop into a car for the stressful experience of preparing for the driving test. Apparently, in some parts of Spain it’s a breeze, but the various schools have warned me that here in Barcelona they’re especially picky. You have to learn exactly what they watch for (even if they’re things you wouldn’t normally do in “real life”) and learn to do them right. And for the exam, you have at least two other people in the car with you, with the examiner sitting in the back seat giving you directions. In Spanish, and likely with a Catalan accent (which I still find harder to follow). Sounds like fun.
I’m actually impressed with the driving school system (though it’s annoying if you feel you should be “entitled” to drive). What I don’t understand is why, in spite of all this great training, Spain still has such bad accident statistics!
I’ll be glad to eventually be done with all this, and hopefully without spending too much more money… The minimum you could spend, if you pass all tests the first time, would be maybe 300 or 400 Euros (if you find a cheap school). If you were learning “for real” (i.e. had never driven before), you might need 20 or 30 practical sessions in the car, which could easily reach toward 1,000 Euros.
It’s a good reminder that driving is not a right, it’s a privilege. Here, in fact, it really is a luxury.
P.S. After I finally get my licence, I’ll get to slap a big “L” (I call it the “Loser sign”) in the back window of the car, whenever I drive. For a full year. And I won’t be able to go faster than 80km/h, even on the autopistas!
P.P.S. I don’t understand why Spain refuses to accept licences from Canada and the U.S., yet happily converts licences for people from Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, …(not saying they’re all bad drivers, but…) Obviously, all E.U. licence-holders can also just do a canje (swap) as well. I’ve even heard of people going so far as to get residency in Ireland, swap their North American licence there, then make their move to Spain, swapping the licence again. Just to avoid going back to school and tests. To me, this is a bit too much — sure it’s stressful and no fun(*), but just get on with it!
(*) Actually, it is kind of fun. My teacher (Josep) is a brusque, jovial, loud Catalan man who likes to pound the desk with his fist or a pointer, bellowing at the student who got something wrong. In my earlier years this kind of teaching behaviour would have traumatized me, but now that I’m a “mature student”, I just find it entertaining. Hopefully, his antics will make the 16 hours pass en un plis-plas.