Driving lessons for the lovely people of Edinburgh.

There’s a catch though. Read on if you dare.

This beautiful picture was taken by Adam Wilson. If you’d like to see more of his brilliant stuff, fourcolourblack is the place to go.

Here’s the catch. The driving lessons aren’t in Edinburgh. Keep reading.

Finding a driving instructor in Edinburgh right now is tough. Prices are high, and the wait can be very long. But what if I told you that you could get excellent lessons with a better chance of passing your test? The catch? You’d need to travel to East Calder.

I already teach some learners from Edinburgh who make the trip, and here’s why it worked for them. Maybe it will work for you too.

01.

Price & availability

Driving lessons in Edinburgh usually cost more than in surrounding areas. Are the instructors better, or do they simply know they can charge more for the same service? It is the latter.

High demand in Edinburgh has pushed prices up and lengthened waiting times to start lessons. While a few instructors offer lower prices, be cautious as there is usually a reason why.

You can see my current prices here.

02.

Pass rates

The two main driving test centres that Edinburgh instructors use are Currie and Musselburgh. I use Livingston. Here’s the most recent DVSA information on pass rates.

Test Centre	Pass rate
Currie	43.2%
Musselburgh	47.0%
Livingston	50.7%

Rolling 12 month pass rate for my clients tends to hover at about 75-80%.

03.

Ease of travel

OK, it’s not quite as straightforward as having an instructor pick you up locally in Edinburgh. But it is still pretty easy.

Lothian buses have 3 different services that will have you here and back in the blink of an eye. X27, X28 & X40.

X27/X28 timetable (PDF)

X40 timetable (PDF)

Here’s what customers think.

Patience × No faults × Punctual × Support × incredible experience × Completely at ease × Focus × Explained everything clearly × Evident that he cared × clean × safe × highly recommend × supportive × made time × safety came first × helped with anxiety × highly professional × knowledgeable × enjoyable × comfortable × rapid improvement × excellent training × created a relaxed environment × genuine interest in helping × incredibly patient × brilliant instructor × very nice man × laugh × encouragement × amazing × passed first time × calm × super attentive × 100% focus × absolutely brilliant on all fronts × stress free × Couldn't recommend him enough

“

I had an incredible experience during my driving lessons with Duncan. From the very first lesson, I felt completely at ease behind the wheel. The instructor's calm and patient demeanour helped me relax and focus, which made a big difference in my confidence.

Duncan was great and helped me to achieve a no fault pass. Very patient throughout my entire experience and made time for me when I needed.

Every lesson was packed full of practice, he always asked me what I wanted to do and planned the lesson around it. Always felt at ease which a lot of my friends struggled with during their lessons so very happy that I never had to deal with that.

With Duncan as my instructor, I passed my test first time with no faults. The lessons were very enjoyable, and I felt comfortable to ask questions and didn’t feel stressed or anxious when driving.

Previously, I learned the basics of driving and test preparation in Edinburgh with another instructor. However, I felt my progress had stalled, so I switched to Duncan. I'm very glad I did. I saw rapid improvement under his guidance, as he focused each lesson on areas where I lacked confidence.

Had a bad experience with a previous driving instructor so was very anxious about getting back on the roads again, but Duncan created a relaxed environment and was very encouraging and supportive when it came to my driving.

Duncan has been incredibly patient and very accommodating to my particular circumstances. I was very anxious to start driving and now I feel a very confident driver. I would highly recommend Duncan.

I passed first time!!! Duncan has been a really brilliant instructor. He always was patient and stuff when I was learning things and he explained stuff in different ways if I didn't understand.

Duncan was a great instructor really calm which helps if you’re an anxious person like me. He gets straight to the point and is always on time for lessons. I’ve just passed first time with 0 minors with him and would recommend him to anyone in the area looking for a driving instructor.

Excellent instructor. Very calm and relaxing, super attentive with 100% focus on your driving. Can not recommend highly enough!

Duncan was absolutely brilliant on all fronts, he was able to accommodate my schedule and took care to modify his approach to teaching based on my experience level and tight turnaround to a test date I had previously booked.

I had a great experience. Duncan is a very calm driving instructor and always made my lessons enjoyable and stress free. I was nervous about learning to drive but only after a few lessons with Duncan I became confident. Couldn’t thank him enough!