Address the existing flaws in road regulations

IN Malaysia, when someone needs to renew his/her driving licence, he/she just heads for the nearest post office or Road Transport Department office or agency and pay the required fees.

There’s no need to retest for driving efficiency or do medical checkups to confirm a person’s continued fitness in handling motor vehicles. It’s like we are just paying tax to allow us to drive.

Another area of concern is the absence of a ceiling age for people to drive in Malaysia. The only efficiency test we take is during driving lessons prior to obtaining the licence, which majority of us would have done at the age of 17. The two-year probation period for new drivers which was implemented about 15 years ago is not much of an improvement as the system only looks out for summonses or fines imposed on the driver. If the new drivers did not even drive at all in the two years (they may have been abroad for their studies), would they have fulfilled the requirements of the probation?

Our public transport drivers, especially bus drivers, do have to undergo medical checkups when they apply for the professional driver’s licence but that too is done only once. How sure is the Road Transport Department that the health of public transport drivers has not deteriorated over time?

People who suffer from certain health conditions, like epilepsy and severe obstructive sleep apnea, should be banned from driving. But I know a school bus driver who has admitted to suffering from severe obstructive sleep apnea, a condition that could make him very lethargic at any time and would endanger the lives of the children in his bus.