Of the 250,000 people that take the scooter driver’s license test each year, more than half incorrectly answer questions about how to drive safely when a vehicle is positioned to the front and right of them, the Directorate-General of Highways (DGH) said yesterday.
Since 2015, when more than 1,000 questions were added to the exam database, the passing rate has dropped to less than 81 percent, the agency said.
After simulated scenarios were added on May 1, 2016, the rate dropped even lower, with only 68.91 percent of test takers passing, a record low for the nation, it said.
Photo courtesy of the Taoyuan Motor Vehicles Office
Examinees performed better on the questions added last year, with a more than 70 percent pass rate from December last year to April, it said, adding that the pass rate had fallen to 68.9 percent in November last year.
Although scenarios on paper allow test takers to understand the road situations that they might face, all examinees from September would need to do practice tests that would show their ability to perceive motorcycle hazards, the agency said.
The motorcycle hazard test platform requires examinees to watch videos and respond to events they consider dangerous, it said.
The top incorrectly answered questions from November last year to the end of last month included the distance that a rider should maintain from the inner tire of a large vehicle making a turn, which of three scooters coming from opposite directions has the right of way at a two-way intersection without signals or lights, the safest braking method for descending a hill and who has the right of way when a rider and an oncoming vehicle are turning into the same lane, the agency said.
With more than 13.8 million scooters nationwide, Taiwan has the highest scooter density in Asia, but, according to the National Police Administration, the top three infractions by scooter drivers are not yielding to traffic, inappropriate turns, and running traffic lights or not observing turn signals.
The agency said that last year it introduced more than 60 questions to simulate conditions related to right of way, turning, dangerous driving, inappropriate behavior, switching lanes and defensive driving.
It said it hoped that the questions would ensure that future drivers have the necessary attitudes and habits to perceive hazards and avoid accidents.
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