[Photo: FILE]
Fiji is tightening its driver licensing system by making road safety training compulsory before new drivers can sit a learner licence test.
The Land Transport Authority will introduce a mandatory Learner Driver Course for all Class 2 Learner Permit applicants from next Monday to reduce road crashes, serious injuries, and fatalities.
LTA Chief Executive Irimaia Rokosawa says all learner applicants must complete the course before becoming eligible to sit the Driver Knowledge Test.
He says the course will be provided free of charge at LTA branches nationwide and is designed to ensure new drivers understand road rules, hazard awareness, defensive driving, accident response, and driving responsibilities.
Rokosawa says many crashes are preventable and often caused by poor decision-making and limited understanding of road safety.
He says the requirement is intended to build safe driving habits from the beginning of the licensing process, before drivers take to the road.
The course will support the introduction of Fiji’s upcoming two-tier provisional licensing system, under which new drivers progress through P1 and P2 stages before qualifying for a full licence.
LTA says drivers who commit traffic offences during the provisional period will face delays in progressing to a full licence, while repeated offences could result in licence suspension and a requirement to restart the process.
Rokosawa says the changes aim to create safer, more responsible drivers and strengthen road safety across Fiji.
