34 Driving Instructors Certified by the ITA

Thirty-four driving instructors have been certified by the Island Traffic Authority (ITA), enabling them to offer their services to the public.

They represent the first batch of instructors to be licensed to teach driving under the Road Traffic Act and Regulations.

Regulation 168 (1) of the Regulations, 2022, states that a person shall not provide services as a driving instructor without being certified by the ITA.

Seven persons received full certification, while the others were awarded provisional certificates, which allows them to operate for a specified period until the full certification requirements are fulfilled.

Minister of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport, Hon. Daryl Vaz, commended the driving instructors for getting certified.

He also hailed the ITA for its role in fostering a safe traffic environment in accordance with the Road Traffic Act 2018 and the Road Traffic Regulations 2022.

The Minister was addressing the certification ceremony held on Wednesday (June 19), at the Ministry’s Maxfield Avenue location in Kingston.

Deputy General of Road Traffic at the ITA, Vernal Oliver, also commended the driving instructors and urged those who have not attained full certification to take steps to do so.

“Being fully certified by the ITA will open many new opportunities for you. As a certified driving instructor, you will be able to offer driver training not only to individuals [who have] a learner’s permit but also to those preparing for various licences,” he noted.

Furthermore, Mr. Oliver said, being fully certified will enable instructors to apply for a licence to operate their own driving school.

The requirement for a driving instructor certificate does not apply to individuals teaching their family members or friends to drive free of charge.

Meanwhile, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) and Head of the Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch (PSTEB), Gary McKenzie, charged the newly certified driving instructors to uphold the standards taught in the driving instructor programme.

“Driving instructors have the responsibility to prepare drivers to use the roadways in a safe way. The credibility of this preparation will likely be exemplified in the display of driving that we will see in the future, and it cannot be too soon for us to start to see changes,” he said.

“So I, therefore, implore driving instructors to uphold the standards of their training. Ensure that the ethical and moral compass established during training are maintained. The safety of our lives is dependent on this,” he pointed out.

Persons applying to be certified as a driving instructor must be at least 24 years old, must have held and used the class of driver’s licence for which certification is being sought for not less than 24 months, and are required to successfully complete a driving instructor training programme approved by the ITA.

The application made to the ITA should include a police record; character references from any two of these persons – a Justice of the Peace (JP), a Minister of Religion, an Officer of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), or an Attorney-at-Law; a medical certificate from a registered medical practitioner indicating the health (including the mental health) of the applicant; and the fee specified.

The Authority may, upon receipt of an application, request that the applicant furnish additional information and documents as considered relevant.

An applicant for a licence to operate a driving school is required to, among other things, provide evidence that an owner, a director or a partner of the driving school is a certified driving instructor, and also provide character references from any two of these persons – a JP, a Minister of Religion, an officer of the JCF or an Attorney-At-Law.

The applicant must also prove that the building to be used for classrooms at the driving school is approved for the purpose by the local authority; is in good repair; has adequate firefighting and protective equipment; has suitable and adequate toilet facilities for staff and students and supplies necessary for rendering first aid; and is equipped with adequate desks, chairs, audio and visual equipment and other necessary items.

Also, to be submitted is a written outline of the classroom and on-the-road instructional programme, which shall meet or exceed the minimum programme standards established by the Authority.

The Authority may, at any time, inspect or cause an inspection to be made of a driving school by any authorised person, and keep a register of driving instructors and driving schools to be known as the Register of Driving Instructors and Driving Schools.