On many Saskatchewan roads it is a common occurrence for cars to slow down or even come to a stop while trying to merge onto the highway.

According to Corporal Andree Sieber of the Traffic Safety Unit, not merging properly can be a dangerous practice.

“We've seen people who have stopped and have backed up traffic while they're merging. You should never ever stop at a merge lane, that merge lane is designed so that you can increase your speed to merge onto the roadway safely," said Sieber.

According to Sieber, many drivers who stop while merging say they are afraid of the speeds of the road they are merging on to.

“The suggestion we have for that is if you're afraid of those high speeds and it's something you're uncomfortable with, find a different route to drive until you can practice when there's less traffic," said Sieber.

The merge is a simple technique that takes practice, but in Saskatchewan drivers are often handed a license without proving they fully know what they are doing behind the wheel. According to Shay Shpak, the Director in Charge of Driver Development with SGI, the Class 5 road test does not require drivers to merge onto a highway.

"All of those tests have to be equal. There aren't merge lanes in all of these small towns. And so we want someone who's taking a test in one jurisdiction to have the same test as someone else in a different jurisdiction," said Shpak.

SGI has around 50 driver examiners that conduct over 40,000 tests all over Saskatchewan. Class 5 Drivers tests mostly focus on intersections, due to 50 per cent of collisions in the province happening on those parts of roads. But according to SGI, it is impractical to address all driving situations, including merging onto highways.

“So instead of putting all those scenarios into a road test, that's why we have driver training," said Shpak.

Saskatchewan and Quebec are the only provinces that require drivers to do training before applying for a driver’s test. In Saskatchewan, prospective drivers must spend a minimum of six hours in a Class room learning the rules, and another six in the car with an instructor.

"We have six hours for the six and six program. So an hour on the highway is usually about right. I take my students usually out to Lumsden and back,” said Ken Locke, a driving instructor.

After completing the training and receiving a certificate, there is no need for drivers to work on highway merging skills again. SGI wants supervising drivers to get their license hopefuls to experience as many scenarios as possible. However, there is not anything stopping someone from completing the test, without ever going on a highway again following driver training.

Joe Hargrave, the Minister responsible for SGI, said the last time major changes were made to the Class 5 system was nearly 15 years ago, when graduated licensing was introduced.

"I think the whole Class 5 test, the exam, the test, they all have to be looked at, expanded and improved," said Hargrave. “Things have changed in the last thirteen years substantially. With cars, with vehicles on our highways, so the whole thing's got to be looked at."

Although some communities do not have a suitable highway nearby, learning how to merge at high speeds is a crucial skill for new drivers. So, SGI will be looking to improve safety on Saskatchewan roads, while trying to keep tests equal for both urban and rural drivers.

"Safety always overpowers fairness. It's all about safety on the highway. And the merging onto traffic at higher speeds, well it's done more often in the city than it is in rural. But we'll be looking at that as part of the overall review," said Hargrave.

Now that updates have been made to the Class 1 licensing program for truckers, Hargrave said that they can begin looking at the Class 5 system. He could not confirm exactly when the changes will take place but they are aiming to make updates in around one year.

Based on a report by Colton Wiens