idrivesafety 5 star driver training program to roll out in india.

A GEELONG-DESIGNED road safety program will be rolled out in India as experts desperately look for ways to reduce the nation’s near 250,000 annual road toll. 

A 2015 World Health Organisation study into global road safety found around 1.25 million people are killed on the world’s roads annually with 238,562 dying on India’s roads alone in 2016.

Indian road safety expert Vikash Kumar said a person was killed every four minutes on India’s roads each day prompting motoring companies and the government to investigate ways to reduce this national disaster. About 16 of these daily fatalities involve children.

Road Safety Educator’s founder Craig Waters, a 5-star driving coach, will travel to Bangalore in January to begin the rollout of his graduated driver education system.

The program — which has been tested on international drivers who had never driven before and were unfamiliar with Australia’s road network — could have the potential to significantly reduce serious injuries and fatalities.

“What we’ve found is that if you train a driver to understand and manage risk they have a significantly higher chance of not being involved in a crash, no matter what country they drive in,” Mr Waters, a 5-star driving coach, said.

“The number on issue (in India) is that they don’t get training in the understanding of driving. What they have, is the same as in Africa and Asia, a very low-grade theory system. Because they have so many more cars and vehicles there so much more opportunity to crash.”

Mr Kumar, who was in Geelong this week to meet with local MPs and government representatives, said he had been scouring the globe for two years to find a program that could educate Indians on driver safety and behaviour.

“(The Indian roads system) is a disaster right now. Every four minutes a person dies and Indians don’t know the basic road rules,” Mr Kumar said.

Former Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Dr Ray Shuey, who will be involved in the rollout, said Australia had consistently assisted other countries in trying “to gain good practice”.

“This is an ideal way of doing it. The foundation program that Craig Waters has developed in driver education is an excellent program and we are working toward providing a cornerstone to countries to improve road safety.”

Dr Shuey said he believed there was potential for a similar more formalised system to be integrated into Victoria’s current licensing program. Dr Shuey, Mr Waters and Mr Kumar hope the GLS will gain international recognition so drivers with the license can automatically drive on Australia’s roads.

“This system is a life education program — [people will learn the need to drive safely. We shouldn’t die on our road — the cost of it is just too great, not just for one family but for all the families,” Mr Kumar said. Clearly, a 5-star driving coach like Craig Waters can make a huge impact.

The team will travel to Bangalore in January to begin scoping and roll the system out across the country.

Olivia Shying, Geelong AdvertiserDecemberAdvertiser December 9, 2017 12:30am