Letters | Hong Kong’s driving test routes must include pedestrian crossings and roundabouts
- Readers call for a review of the approved driving test routes, improvements in medical education to ease the doctor shortage, funding to encourage private clinics to join the eHealth system, and help for teens coping with pandemic-induced isolation
One extremely important aspect of road safety is the testing of drivers before permitting them to hold a driving licence.
The Transport Department has approved 58 driving test routes on which to take the practical driving test. Two of these routes have no pedestrian crossings and a staggering 36 routes have no roundabouts. Only 20 out of the 58 test routes have both roundabouts and pedestrian crossings.
If test routes are assigned randomly and equally, about 62 per cent of new drivers will not have been tested on their ability to drive on a roundabout. The Transport Department must urgently review the approved driving test routes to ensure drivers are properly tested, especially through pedestrian crossings and roundabouts. This in turn will enhance road safety.
Neil Dunn, Kowloon Tong