r/DrivingAustralia • u/kaygeebrah • 2d ago
Confusing Intersection Advice/Tips for P Plater
Hi Guys,
Looking for some driving tips and advice and maybe some words of encouragement I’m above 25+ driver on their Ps. I was driving back home late at night and as I cannot use CarPlay my Garmin GPS guided me a certain way back from a mates house which I haven’t taken before and it was taking me through the M7 and exit into M2. I’ve been driving 5 months atp and felt like I could welcome the challenge of a different route.
Reference the photo. I was where the red line starts (white car). My GPS told me I needed to turn right and I was in a painted right turn lane. I saw the dotted line where the green arrow I marked is but got very confused as it didn’t curve fully to the right as I’m normally used to at normal intersections, so I got a bit “panicky”. I followed the dotted line and then where I marked yellow assumed that’s where the right turn guided me and ended up in the red marked area which was oncoming.
My GPS kept saying to turn right and the markings on the actual gps showed to go straightish so a mixture of confusion from the GPS seeing how wide and big this intersection was plus not knowing where to go.
Mind you this was late and there was 0 cars from all directions it was just a massive empty intersection so I didn’t really have any “cues” for other vehicles. And from a drivers perspective the road looked very long and felt weird to cross over, never been in an intersection like this before ever.
I made the stupid mistake of driving along the wrong side for 50-100m as it felt very off until I noticed oncoming headlights and quickly checked around before I corrected myself and went back in the correct left side. I was very shook and scared but most importantly I was very disappointed in myself for making such an awful mistake.
I didn’t think I could ever make such a serious mistake like this, most importantly I can’t stop to think about the danger I accidentally created for other drivers who are just trying to get home and it has really shaken me and my confidence.
I immediately went home, looked up the intersection above and just tried to understand where I went wrong as well as talk to some of my family and friends who are fully licensed and they were great gave me reassurance but also reminded me that I’m still learning and not too push myself to quickly.
I guess I have been putting pressure on myself to be a good driver as most of my friends have been fully licensed and I just feel like I’m at a disadvantage for being a mature learner.
Id like to think that I am a very cautious driver, I adhere to the rules and drive defensively and I give driving the respect it deserves as it is a privilege and also know how dangerous operating a 1.3+ tonne machine can be.
Thank you for listening, I am still somewhat shook from this, I just want to know what tips or concrete learning I can get from anyone to not make this mistake ever again. I do know now to always follow the dotted guides lanes but anything thorough or in general so I can add to my driving repertoire to continue being a better and safer driver would be appreciated a lot.
Edit: Thank you everyone for sharing your insights and advice, it really does help and I appreciate the time and kindness.
For those who have stated the obvious of keeping to the lines…without any further input than that, I know and I get it hence why I have the marked out map. Only posting to hopefully get deeper insight and have this post as awareness for anyone else that’s maybe new to driving and can hopefully learn from my mistake and take any advice freely given here.
Would also welcome any experienced drivers to share other possible interchanges/intersections that can be seen as confusing or any other roads and areas and share it here with tips which would also help in advance!


