In a bid to educate drivers about the importance of road safety, traffic laws and regulations, a mandatory “roadworthy” driving seminar for driver’s license applicants and existing licensed drivers is being pushed in the Congress.
Authored by 2nd District Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, House Bill 505 or the “Roadworthy Driving Seminar for All Drivers Act” seeks to “instill discipline and inculcate knowledge on road safety and traffic laws and regulations by requiring all driver’s license applicants and existing licensed drivers to undergo a mandatory driving seminar and an actual driving test before granting them full driving privileges.”
Barbers said, “Apart from constructing more public roads and highways and providing more options for the commuting public, one straightforward solution to the traffic problem is to instill discipline and impart knowledge among motorists.”
The lawmaker said that “uneducated” drivers contribute to traffic congestion by “blatantly” ignoring traffic rules which ultimately causes worsening traffic in the country.
“Safe and disciplined driving practice is key to (keeping) the traffic system orderly. We simply cannot allow our current traffic behavior to continue. We must choose to impose order, and in the course, improve the traffic system and the economy,” Barbers said.
The bill will require all applicants for a driver’s license and existing holders of such to undergo a mandatory driving seminar and an actual driving test before granting them of full driving privileges, the media release said.
Applicants and existing driver’s license holders who fail the actual driving test will have to pay a fee of P500 to P1,000.