After 63 trouble-free years on the road, you might think Bernard Smyth has little to learn about safe driving.

But the 80-year-old, who has never had a bump or scrape, let alone a point on his licence, likes to keep his hand in when it comes to good motoring.

After signing up to the Telegraph & Argus Millennium speed reduction campaign, Mr Smyth, of Pasture Walk, Clayton, Bradford, won a special assessment with an advanced instructor.

The veteran motorist has every right to be proud of his unblemished motoring record, having driven everything from a 30-ton military tank-carrier to his current J-reg Nissan Micra.

As for his test, taken back in 1937, he recalls: "I didn't have a lot of lessons. I just went out driving with a friend on a couple of Sundays before the test." After working as a delivery driver near Oxford, he enlisted as a driver in the Royal Army Service Corps at the outbreak of World War Two.

His driving skills were again called on at the evacuation of Dunkirk. "Having retreated across France we had the job of transporting troops, ammunition and equipment out of the country." After a short time in England, Mr Smyth was back serving with the corps in Egypt and Greece.

And when he returned home permanently, to driving three-ton lorries for the Bradford Dyers Association, it wasn't long before he was being honoured for his road sense. He won a host of safety awards from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents between 1948 and 1958 and a year later passed his advanced driving test with flying colours.

Mr Smyth who was also traffic warden for more than a decade, threw his weight behind the Millennium Kill Your Speed campaign, run by the T&A and RoSPA, saying: "By taking our feet off the accelerator there are likely to be fewer accidents and deaths on the road."

He added: "The standard of driving has definitely fallen. People have become more aggressive and impatient."

Roger Vincent, of RoSPA, said he was pleased with T&A readers' response to the Millennium pledge. "It is encouraging that people are prepared to commit to slower driving for the start of 2000. Killing our speed can have a massive impact on the number of accidents."

l The second winner of the free driver- assessment session was Paul Hargreaves, of Swainhouse Crescent, Bradford.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.