As of July 2016, motorbike driving tests in Hanoi, Saigon and Khanh Hoa province will be scored by underground electronic sensors instead of humans.
Under Vietnam's current system, driving tests are adjudicated by a board of judges, reports Tuoi Tre. However, this summer, the new automated system will be applied to A1 driving licenses, which permit drivers to operate a motorbike under 175cc, in accordance with a new set of regulations from the Ministry of Transport.
While the system is currently being piloted at Tien Bo Driving School in Saigon's Tan Phu District, it is the only facility of the city's 20 driving schools to practice with the electronic sensor system. An equipment shortage could cause hiccups in the rollout of this new method, as there is only one manufacturer of the underground electronic sensors, and systems go for a staggering VND2 billion (US$89,220) apiece. As such, city officials worry that driving centers will not be prepared to hold such tests by the time these new regulations go into effect.
Under the electronic system, drivers will take the same test as before, however a series of underground sensors will detect any errors during the exam. Once a fault has been detected, the system will read out the specific error via loudspeaker. Results will be announced immediately following the machine-operated test, but you might not like what you hear. According to Nguyen Anh Dung, vice principal of Tien Bo Driving School, the pass rate for human-judged driving tests is 80-85%; with the sensor system, it's around 50%.
“I am quite worried about the rather low pass rate,” Dung told Tuoi Tre. “However, this is also considered a way to improve the quality of driving tests in Vietnam.”
In 2015, the number of motorbike driving test applicants increased 52%, which is no surprise when you consider that Saigon registers an average of 900 new vehicles everyday.
[Photo via Rob Whitworth]
