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Sunday, Jun 13, 2010
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Driving test to be electronically monitored

S. Rajendran and Anil Kumar Sastry

Test track coming up on the new premises of the Jnana Bharathi RTO

— Photo K. Murali Kumar

New facility:The electronic driving test track is being built at a cost of Rs. 1.6 crore.

BANGALORE: An electronic driving test track, stated to be the first in the country, will soon be in operation in Bangalore. According to authorities, it will go a long way in preventing corruption and misuse of powers while issuing driving licences.

Construction of the test track is in the final stages. The facility is coming up on the new premises of the Jnana Bharathi Regional Transport Office in the Railwaymen House Building Cooperative Society Layout at Mallathahalli.

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Kamal Nath has been requested to inaugurate the state-of-the-art facility.

The facility, which uses electronic sensor technology, has two tracks for two-wheelers and one track for four-wheelers. Transport Commissioner Bhaskar Rao is overseeing the execution of the project.

Those seeking a two-wheeler licence have to show their riding skills on a zigzag test track.

Car drivers will have to drive up a gradient without allowing the vehicle to roll back, move on a 8-shaped track, parallel park and reverse and park the vehicle and then pass through an S-shaped stretch.

If the driver touches any of the poles on either side of the track, sensors will pass signals to the computer system where it will be recorded and proportionate marks deducted.

10 questions

Mr. Rao said that after the track test the applicant would have to answer 10 questions, randomly selected from 600 questions, on a touch screen. The focus of the exercise is to allow only qualified drivers to drive on public roads.

Under the new driving licence test, a person will no longer be able to accuse the Motor Vehicle Inspector of intentionally failing him or her in the test.

All movements of the vehicle driven by an applicant on the track will be recorded.

The electronic track is being built by State-run Keonics, in association with a private company at a cost of Rs. 1.6 crore.

Control rooms

It is said that both the tracks will have separate control rooms and all information relating to the driving tests will be stored.

While one applicant is being put through the test, others in the queue can watch it on television screens in the waiting lounge.

The project has been funded by the Union Ministry of Information Technology and the State Government's Department of e-governance.

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