Hours before her test, a Generation Z woman took matters into her own hands to fix a practical problem that could have sabotaged her result.
Tash Phillips (@tashphillips24353) posted a clip on TikTok of her and her mom each holding several leafy branches under their arms. The text overlay reads: “POV [point of view] your driving test is tomorrow so you went to cut down a tree as it was blocking your view.”
Having only been learning to drive for three weeks, 19-year-old Phillips told Newsweek she was feeling “really scared” in the lead-up to her test.
For many teens and young adults, the driving test is one of life’s most nerve-wracking milestones.
A 2020 study found that up to 60 percent of first-time drivers report feeling “very anxious” before their exam, with common fears ranging from stalling the car to making dangerous mistakes under pressure.
The anxiety is often heightened when learners have a short training period—in the U.K., for instance, most new drivers take about 45 hours of lessons before their test.
But, for Phillips, her pretest nerves weren’t just about parallel parking or remembering the “mirror-signal-maneuver” sequence.
Instead, she noticed a much-more practical problem: a dangerously obscured junction on her route. “There was a junction that was really dangerous to pull out of, so we decided to cut down a few branches to improve our view and to make it safer,” Phillips said.
The woman in front of her in the clip is her mom, whom she said was also on board.
“It was my driving instructor’s idea, and my mom thought it was a really good idea, so she told me we would go cut it down together,” Phillips added.
The move wasn’t just for her own benefit either. “It helped, but I think it helped the whole community as the council wouldn’t chop it down,” Phillips said.
The clip has been viewed over 4 million times and received a further 548,000 likes. Hundreds of users commented with ways they needed to take action before their driving test.
“I solved my problems by having my test during rush hour. 20 mins wasted in stationary,” one user wrote.
“I filled a pothole before my exam,” another added.
A third commenter said: “I removed a traffic sign for that reason.”
And did the removal of the branches work? “Yes,” Phillips said. “I did pass.”
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