Drivers� testing goes hi-tech
Keikantse Lesemela | Tuesday January 27, 2015 15:27
The project entails full computerisation of the testing ground.
The initiative, which includes the installation of sensors in testing cars, originates from Korea. Speaking to Mmegi during the groundbreaking ceremony on Friday, Project Coordinator, Ming Bong Kwon said there will be sensors on the ground which report on the mistakes done by the candidate. “There will be no cheating. This system will be computer programmed and it will indicate all the mistakes and the correct processes. It will include all aspects, the seat belt, the gears, the speed, the indicators and others,” he said. Kwon said the system will reduce corruption and clients would not complain as much as they used to because all the marks will be processed through the machine without human interference. “The machine will record the voices and there will also be a video recording during the tests. So this will be a fair and transparent testing system,” said Kwon.
He said the system would also reduce the period of testing, thus enabling more people to be tested in a day. “The test will just take 12 minutes, but this can be programmed according to Department of Road, Transport and Safety (DRTS)’s preference,” he said.
For his part, the minister of Transport and Communications, Tshenolo Mabeo said the project is timely as the country is used to driver testing facilities that are wholly manned by officers who alone decide the fate of the driver. “In the past we heard of corrupt practices such as people receiving bribes in order to get licences. I am very positive that with such a development, we shall see such practices coming to an end,” he said.
He said the system would offload the burden from the candidates of finding a vehicle for testing and paying huge amounts of money for using the driving school vehicle. “The other advantage is that DRTS will be able to test more candidates than the current situation,” he said.
The system, which is a first in Africa, is used in countries such as Russia, China, Malaysia, Georgia and others.