Scared to Drive at Night? A 6-Step Ladder to Print

Before you start

• Choose a time when you are not tired. Tiredness makes everything feel harder, and a calm start helps.
• Check that your headlights, windscreen and mirrors are clean, so you can see as well as the night allows.
• The UK Highway Code (rule 115) says to slow down or stop if you are dazzled by oncoming headlights. That is a good rule to keep in mind wherever you live.

The 6 steps

From dusk to a longer drive after dark. Do each step for real, then come back when you are parked and rate how anxious you felt: 0 is calm, 10 is the most anxious you can imagine. The NHS advises staying with a step until the fear has dropped by about half, then moving on. Repeat or skip any step. There is no deadline. 0 of 6 done.

1. Sit in the parked car at dusk

   Lights on. Two minutes.

   Park at dusk, put your lights on and sit in the driver’s seat for two minutes. Look at how the light is changing. Rate your anxiety before and after.

   Step 1 done

   Anxiety 0 to 10

   Rate

   Before / 10After / 10Date

2. Drive around the block at dusk

   A familiar loop, well-lit streets.

   Drive one familiar loop around the block at dusk, on well-lit streets. Keep it short. When you park, rate the step and write one line about what went well.

   Step 2 done

   Anxiety 0 to 10

   Rate

   Before / 10After / 10Date

3. A familiar route at dusk

   A road you know well.

   Drive a route you know well at dusk. Choose a short one and plan one place where you could stop. Repeat it until the number falls.

   Step 3 done

   Anxiety 0 to 10

   Rate

   Before / 10After / 10Date

4. A short drive after dark

   Well-lit streets, home by an early hour.

   Take a short drive after dark on streets that are well lit, and be home at an early hour. Keep to roads you know. This is the first real step into the dark.

   Step 4 done

   Anxiety 0 to 10

   Rate

   Before / 10After / 10Date

5. A familiar route after dark

   Plan one place where you could stop.

   Drive a familiar route after dark and plan one place where you could stop. Notice what helps, such as clean glass or a quieter road.

   Step 5 done

   Anxiety 0 to 10

   Rate

   Before / 10After / 10Date

6. A less lit road

   Only when the earlier steps feel easier.

   Try a less lit road. Move to this step only when the earlier steps feel easier. Look at the road in daylight first, so you know what is ahead.

   Step 6 done

   Anxiety 0 to 10

   Rate

   Before / 10After / 10Date

Your ticks and ratings are saved in this browser only and match the Step ladder builder.

If a step feels too big

If the dark is the hard part, add steps at dusk before moving to full dark. Another way to split it: do the same route as a passenger at night first, so you see what it looks like in the dark.

Questions