Call for advanced driving skills for all

Advanced driving skills should not be for a select few, says Africa Training Centre owner who specializes in driver training, Mr Walter Mahadoo.

Mr Mahadoo who also has in his employ former Road Traffic Inspectorate staffers, said his centre does offer defensive driving skills. He said defensive driving is basically about the driver’s ability and competence in managing emergency situations, anticipating danger and responding appropriately to tricky situations."

He added: "Advanced driving or defensive driving is essentially about being safety conscious on the road. But there is always a need for refresher courses to renew that knowledge and skill."

Referring to challenges of managing the testing processes for learner drivers, Mr Mahadoo suggested that user-friendly course guide material was needed to match the high standard of driver testing offered by the KZN Transport Department.

Mr Mahadoo argued: "If we are to discourage the failure rate amongst learner drivers that contributes to unqualified driving which in turn threatens safety on our roads, we need teaching course guides that are easier to use and understand. In that way, we can encourage learner drivers to pass the tests and become competent and safe professional drivers."

Mr Mahadoo who has interest in extending his driver skill development and training to the taxi industry, says his centre is contracted by a big petrol companies to train at least 300 truck drivers per year on the job.

"We are the second BEE training institute in the country that has been approved by Transport Education Training Authority (TETA)," he said.

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