Getting a driving licence for a four-wheeler may no longer be an easy affair, what with the Transport Department taking stringent measures to test the driving skills of candidates on a simulator before taking them onto the streets for the final test.
Bhaskar Rao, commissioner, Transport and Road Safety, said, “We will introduce simulators in the next three months as part of the evaluation test across all Road Transport Offices (RTOs), both in the city and the state, once the smart card process is stabilised.”
He added that the simulators will help measure the behaviour of the driver of a four-wheeler. The simulation test will help detect even the smallest error made by a candidate. The test will examine the driver’s reaction when he approaches a speed-breaker, pedestrian crossing or sudden approach of vehicles.
And all this will be done with the help of a screen that will function like that of a play-station. The machine will view the driving skills of a candidate and mark him accordingly. The test will be based on a score of 100, and a candidate needs to obtain a minimum of 60 marks to get to the next level of a road test.
As of now, all the five RTOs in Bangalore are equipped with simulators, but they are not in a working condition as they do not have an annual maintenance contract. But now, the RTOs plan to outsource the maintenance of simulators, officials said.
With the RTOs all set to introduce this, it’s time for motor driving schools to upgrade their infrastructure to prepare their students for this stringent test. Ram Pillai of Phillip Motor Driving School said, “If the RTO is planning to make the simulator test compulsory, we have no choice but to install the machine at our schools as well to train students. We will buy the machine once they implement it as part of the driving test, as the machine costs about Rs10-25 lakh.”
V Bhargavi of Mahaveer Driving School also shared the same view: “It is good that the RTO has taken this decision as it will help drivers perfect themselves in driving skills and this will bring down the rate of accidents.”
“We already have a simulator in our school. We will begin training our students on the simulator as well once the RTO implements it. This, I am sure, will make drivers more perfect on the road,” said Dev of Maruthi Suzuki Driving School.
The proof is on the screen
Simulator is a computer-controlled device like a video-game, where the candidate moves manages the steering wheel, gears and other driving devices, driving on the tracks that appear in the screen before him.
The simulator will record each movement of the candidate’s driving style, like how long he remains on the right track and the speed that he maintains throughout the test. Also, any mistake in the clutch operation will immediately find a sign saying “clutch error” flashed across the screen.
Officials say that during a road test, often candidates err by shifting to the fifth gear instead of the third gear. But the simulator will detect even this, thus reducing the candidate’s chances of obtaining a driving licence. If a candidate forgets to wear the seat belt, the ignition of the simulator will refuse to start, and this will also be recorded.
At the end of the test session, the simulator will give a print out with the candidate’s photograph and details of his driving attitude.
