[sustran] International Driving License - Ireland and Singapore

[Brendan Finn]

Dear Rajendra,

In answer to your situation about issuing of international driver licences,
the general situation in Ireland is as follows (there is a note on Singapore
at the end of the message) :

1) An international driver's licence is issued based on an existing Irish
driver licence. It is primarily an administrative document for driving in
other countries, and is subject to whatever rules apply in that country. The
issue of these licences is handled by the AA (Automobile Association) in
Dublin and they can be issued on-the-spot for the payment of a small
administration fee.

2) Testing of the driver's skill and knowledge is only carried out for the
issue of the national driving licence. The test is a one-off activity based
on a knowledge test, followed by a driving competence test on the public
road. The test is carried out by trained officials under the Department of
the Environment. The result (pass/fail) is given immediately after the test
and the successful applicant can then acquire a full driving licence.
Applicants are tested on the category of vehicle for which they seek the
licence, and will need to undergo a further test for a more qualified
licence (e.g. you may initially get a licence entitling you to drive a car,
and later seek to extend your licence for bus or heavy truck). An applicant
is not required to have attended any formal training course or completed a
minimum number of hours of supervised training. Licences are typically
issued on a 10-year basis, and renewal is a straightforward matter.

3) Although there have been promises of immediate action, we still await a
penalty point system for traffic violations and driving offences. This may
be introduced in 2001-2. However, the Courts have the right to suspend a
driver's licence, or even disqualify them from driving for a lengthy period.
This is now routine whenever a person is convicted of drink-driving (usually
a one-year suspension), and disqualifications are related to serious
negligent driving, or driving while under suspension. All such records are
added to the driver's licence (an "endorsement").

4) An interim ("Provisional") driving license can be issued to anyone over
the age of 17 for cars, and this entitles them to drive under supervision,
and is intended to allow a restricted permission to drive during the
learning phase. These are issued for a limited period, and you have to
submit proof of application for a driving test in order to get a renewal.
However, on the second and subsequent provisional licences, the holder is
allowed to drive unaccompanied. This means that drivers with little
experience, as well as drivers that have failed previous tests, are out
there driving on their own. In part, this reflects the dreadful backlog for
testing, and in part the unwillingness of politicians to prioritise safety
ahead of personal mobility and convenience. The very high cost of insurance
for young drivers reduces the numbers, but often they are "named" drivers on
a parent's or older brother/sister's insurance, and use the car when it is
available.

For contacts and for the regulations governing such licences, I suggest you
access the Department of Environment through the Irish Government website at
http://www.irlgov.ie

Finally, for information, the situation for foreigners in Singapore is :
Visitors can drive on the basis of an international driving licence
supported by a current valid national driving licence, and are allowed to do
so for a period not exceeding one year. After that, they must apply for a
Singaporean driving licence. This involves sitting a Basic Theory (written)
test. It is not necessary to take a practical test on the road.

Yours sincerely,


Brendan Finn.

______________________________________________________
----- Original Message -----
From: "Rajendra Aryal" <rajendra.aryal at undp.org>
To: <sustran-discuss at jca.ax.apc.org>
Cc: <traffic at mail.com.np>
Sent: 12 January 2001 18:16
Subject: [sustran] International Driving License: Nepal


> Dear Friends and Colleagues,
>
> I am happy to inform you all that a initiative has been taken in Nepal by
the
> Senior Superintendent of Police for Kathmandu Metrololitan City, Mr. Kumar
> Koirala to issueinternational driving license for the Nepalese citizens
for the
> first time in Nepal. As a transport guy, I had a very good and encouraging
> discussion with him today afternoon.
>
> In fact, this is a new initiative for our country and we feel that we need
to
> share and exchange a lot of information and experience from other parts of
the
> world. I would thus like to request all SUSTRAN members to share the
experience
> they have in this sector. It would also be useful if you could throw some
light
> on the existing system in your respective countries, which could be highly
> beneficial for us here in Nepal, mainly the baisc aspects such as criteria
for
> application, test procedures, validity of the license, process of renewal,
> acceptance in other countries, and of course a sample of the driving
license if
> possible (scanning could be done and sent as an attachment).
>
> I would like to thank all the SUSTRAN members for their cooperation and
support
> in advance and hope that we will be able to get your knowledge and
experience in
> this context.
>
> With warm regards.
>
> Rajendra Aryal
>
>