The Land Transport Authority has announced measures to restructure its licensing system in an effort to reduce traffic accidents and encourage young and inexperienced drivers to drive responsibly.

According to Acting Manager Registration, Licensing, and Driving Isikeli Kama, the revised system will address existing loopholes.

One of the issues they are looking at is the practice of allowing group two license holders to apply for a group five license regardless of their age and experience.

Kama believes these changes will help them tackle a number of incidents and help young drivers get confidence.

“From group two to group three, then go up to group four, then group five. We had an amendment in 2017 where we had group two licenses, full licenses, then you can go for group five, and we’ve seen some effects of that, careless driving by young drivers.”

Viti Minibus Interim General Secretary, Sakiusa Delai, says they support the proposal.

“Keep our road as safe as possible. We do not want our drivers to get involved in accidents. Saving the public and road users. We recommend that this is a good initiative.”

Kama says the initiative to revise the licensing system reflects LTA’s commitment to promoting road safety and ensuring that drivers, especially young and inexperienced ones, adhere to high standards of driving conduct.