Getting Driving Licence: Govt relaxes experience requirement

The government has relaxed until December 31 the requirement of experience for getting licences to drive medium and heavy vehicles.

Under the current rule, motorists having light vehicle drivers' licence for three years can only apply for the licence to drive medium-sized vehicles. Similarly, the licensed drivers of medium-sized vehicles can apply for heavy vehicle drivers' licence.

As per the relaxed requirement, light vehicle drivers can apply for medium-sized vehicle drivers' licence if they have professional licence and one-year experience. Holders of medium-sized vehicle drivers' licence can apply for heavy vehicle drivers' licence if they have the same experience.

The government has taken the decision to make up for the shortage of drivers with licences for medium and heavy vehicles, reads a gazette issued by the Road Transport and Bridges Ministry on August 16.

It will come into effect immediately and will remain in force until December 31.

Transport owner and worker leaders at a meeting at Bangladesh Road Transport Authority office on August 11 urged the government to relax the experience requirements for getting medium and heavy vehicle drivers' licence.

The move came weeks after widespread student protests demanding improved road safety.

An eminent transport expert said the decision would make the roads riskier.

As per the Motor Vehicle Ordinance-1983, a person needs to get a learner's licence for three months before getting the licence to drive light vehicles like cars.

According to the ordinance, large microbus and pickup are medium-sized vehicles while bus and truck are heavy.

Apart from experience, existing procedures that has to be followed to get medium and heavy vehicles' driving licence will remain unchanged, the gazette said.

Moreover, a person having professional driving licence for light vehicles and one-year experience can now drive medium-sized vehicles. Similarly, a person having professional driving licence for medium-sized vehicles can operate heavy vehicles until December 31, it said.

“The government is issuing such directives for the sake of people's interest as well as to keep the movement of passenger and goods-laden vehicles normal in the backdrop of inadequate number of people holding medium and heavy vehicles' driving licence, compared to the number of those vehicles in the country,” reads the gazette notification.

Prof Moazzem Hossain, former director of Accident Research Institute (ARI) of Buet, said the government should have taken a programme to train the drivers before providing them with licences.

“If you give them a licence by relaxing the conditions, it means you are giving them a licence to kill,” he told The Daily Star last night.

“It can't serve people's interest,” he added.

Eminent road safety campaigner Ilias Kanchan said, “I won't oppose it. However, they [drivers] should be given short training and they should go through tests before getting licence for heavy vehicles.”

Asked, Kamrul Ahsan, joint secretary of the road transport ministry, who signed the gazette said, “The decision has been taken for the time being considering people's interest and to keep transport service normal.”

He, however, declined to comment about the concerns that the decision would make roads riskier.

Amid protests for road safety, police launched a crackdown on errant vehicles and drivers across the country.

During the drive, a large number of bus and truck drivers was caught with light vehicle driving licence.

Against the backdrop, transport owner and worker leaders urged the government to relax the requirements.

There are some 35.36 lakh registered vehicles in the country till July this year. So far, the BRTA has issued 26.39 lakh driving licences till the same date.

Of them, 1.38 lakh holds heavy licences while 60,238 possess medium licences and 14.59 lakh holds light licence.