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“Obtaining a (driving) licence is not a right. It is a privilege. Even with a licence, it does not mean you are competent in every vehicle. If the environment or the type of car changes, you need to adjust as well.”
So said Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS) chairman Wong Shaw Voon to The Star, adding that Malaysian drivers should be aware that their vehicles can become killing machines on the road if not operated correctly.
Wong also said that MIROS conducts reviews periodically of improvements to the driver training curriculum. “We have to balance the desired outcome with the costs that will inevitably arise from additional training time or expanded course content. We hope that over time, technology can help make improvements more affordable,” he said, adding that technology could also help curb corrupt practices within the system.
“We can only work to minimise such behaviour. Some people will try to take advantage of the system but technology can help reduce such instances,” he said.
Meanwhile, according to transport safety expert Law Teik Hua of Universiti Putra Malaysia, the driving curriculum focuses heavily on technical manoeuvres rather than preparing learners for complex traffic situations.
“Learners are taught skills such as parallel parking, hill starts and reversing, but these alone are not enough to cope with real-world situations such as encountering speeding traffic or motorcyclists weaving in and out of traffic,” he told The Star, adding that the curriculum should also focus on behavioural awareness and risk management.
“Instructors should help learners understand risk perception, defensive driving, night driving, driving in heavy rain and decision-making under pressure,” he said, adding that fatigue, mobile phone distraction, judging speed and emotional control behind the wheel should also be taught.
“Video-based case studies, driving simulators and AI-assisted feedback systems can help learners better understand dangerous situations before they encounter them on the road,” Law said, adding that a recent road transport department (JPJ) announcement focused largely on operational aspects of driving institutes, such as allowing multi-storey facilities and reducing land requirements.
“As such, there is still a need for a comprehensive review of the learning curriculum itself,” he said, citing Sweden, Australia and the UK, where emphasis is given to hazard perception tests while also gradually exposing new drivers to challenging driving environments.
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[[{“value”:”“Obtaining a (driving) licence is not a right. It is a privilege. Even with a licence, it does not mean you are competent in every vehicle. If the environment or the type of car changes,
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