Driving ambition of Archie Scott, age 92

When Archie Scott became one of the first British motorists to sit a driving test, the rules of the road were very different.

• Transport has mvoed on considerably since Archie Scott first passed his test in 1935 Picture: Denis Straughan

There were no motorways, roundabouts or speed bumps to contend with and rush-hour gridlock was unheard of.

Now, 75 years on, he has proved his mettle behind the wheel by passing the Advanced driving test - at the age of 92.

Mr Scott passed the original test in his beloved Humber in 1935.

But he decided to take the Advanced test in an attempt to prove to the authorities that he can still perform to the highest of standards behind the wheel.

Mr Scott, a former director of Scottish Malt Distillers, is thought to be the oldest in the UK to complete the difficult and complex course.

He said: "I am absolutely delighted. It is quite amazing, but I certainly don't feel the age that I am. It proves that age is no barrier when it comes to achieving something. I love cars and love driving.

"I thought at my age they might say that I was far too old to drive and they would take my licence away. So I wanted to be able to tell them, 'Go away, I'm an advanced driver'."

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Mr Scott and his wife Anne, 89, live in Inverness. He took the original driving test just a year after it was introduced.

He said: "It was in a Humber, a 24-horsepower tourer that did not go more than 50mph - which annoyed me.

"I have had a few cars over the years, including a couple of Jaguar S-types and an MG TC open-top tourer back in 1947, where I had to wear goggles."

Mr Scott, who now drives a Citron, joined the Ross and Cromarty Group of the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) earlier this year and decided to take his test in August.

The test is twice as long as the normal driving test and drivers are assessed on how systematically they respond to hazards and different road conditions.

It involves a more complex route that takes in a wider range of different road types.

Neil Greig, director of policy and research for the IAM, said Mr Scott's feat backed up its own research, which indicated that older drivers were safer on the roads than younger drivers.

He said that, although 8 per cent of drivers were aged over 70, they were involved in only 4 per cent of injury causing crashes. In comparison, the 15 per cent of drivers in their teens and twenties were involved in 34 per cent of injury crashes.

Mr Greig said: "Well done, Archie. He's shown there's no age barrier to being a good driver.

"This underlines our policy, which highlights that every driver is different, so you can't just set an arbitrary age of 70 or 75 at which everyone must resit their test.We would advocate more opportunities for people to have a voluntary reassessment - a sort of refresher."

Lindsay Scott, spokesman for Age Scotland, also congratulated Mr Scott. "This goes to show that just because you're an older person doesn't mean you're incapable of passing a driving test or an advanced driving test," he said.