Parallel parking revealed as trickiest driving manoeuvre, poll finds

'We’ve all felt the pressure of getting into a tight parking space on a busy street when there are others watching'

One in four have struggled to reverse into a space, leading to them asking someone else to finish it on their behalf (Shutterstock)

Drivers think parallel parking is the trickiest driving manoeuvre, according to a new poll.

The slow, slight and precise movement and the two words every learner driver dreads to hear, emerged top in a survey of 2,000 UK motorists.

When searching for a spot, drivers are happy to drive almost a hundred metres further than necessary to find an easier place, if the first space looks a bit tight for a parallel park.

Reversing into a parking bay and reversing around a corner followed as the next most difficult manoeuvres to navigate.

Other driving manoeuvres that cause consternation include pulling up on the right side of the road, pulling forward into a parking bay or simply reversing in a straight line.

Just under a third of the population have failed a driving test due to messing up their manoeuvres, while 47 per cent of drivers have driven away after failing in an attempt to parallel park.

“Parallel parking has been a thorn in drivers’ sides since the invention of the motor car," said David Carter for Accident Advice Helpline, which commissioned the research. “We’ve all felt the pressure of getting into a tight parking space on a busy street when there are others watching.

“So it is no surprise that twice as many people said they dread parallel parking as the next most difficult manoeuvre.”

One in four drivers struggling to reverse into a space have exited the vehicle and let someone else finish the procedure for them, while 15 per cent of respondents claim a parallel park leaves them feeling anxious and one in 10 believe a difficult manoeuvre makes them stressed or nervous.

Although a quarter of men said they feel confident when tackling a tricky manoeuvre – more than double the amount of women who said the same thing. Four in 10 drivers in the UK also think that manoeuvres are the hardest part of driving, beating out road awareness and knowing what all the signs mean.

As a result, top of the wish-list for drivers hoping to improve their manoeuvring skills would be a rear-facing camera on the car to show the distance to other vehicles.

A quarter of drivers would love to always have someone on standby to get out and help guide them into a tight spot, while a fifth think they simply need to be braver and attempt more difficult manoeuvres – in the hope that practice will make perfect.

The top 10 most difficult driving manoeuvres

1. Parallel park

2. Reverse into a parking bay

3. Reversing around a corner

4. Turn-in-the-road/three point turn

5. Driving forward into a parking bay

6. Reversing in a straight line

7. Parking close to the curb

8. Navigating a roundabout

9. Emergency stop

10. Pulling up on the right of the road

SWNS