Women seek driving schools in federal capital

Regular driving schools charge up to Rs15,000 for 15 days of training

ISLAMABAD: Women in the federal capital have demanded that separate driving schools should be set up for them in the city as regular schools do not address their needs fully.

Farhat Yasmeen, a resident of the federal capital said that aspiring women drivers face a host of challenges when learning to drive.

Not only there is an insufficient number of existing driving schools, but given the high demand, they charging exorbitant fees.

Yasmeen urged the relevant authorities to set up a separate driving school for women.

"I want to take driving classes with a female driver, unfortunately, most of the driving schools in Islamabad have either few or no women drivers [to teach other women],” she added.

Another aspiring driver, Zara Khan echoed Yasmeen’s sentiments that the fees charged by driving schools were too high.

"We want that driving schools should cut their charges by half so that everyone can afford it,” she said, adding that driving schools in the federal capital charge between Rs10,000 to Rs15,000 for 15 days of training which is not affordable for everyone.

"The Islamabad administration should take notice of the situation,” she said.

Zara conceded that the driving centre maintained by the Islamabad Traffic Police charges far less, but since it has limited capacity, it cannot accommodate all the applicants.

Female traffic wardens

With the number of women commuters and drivers increasing in the federal capital, there is a need to increase the number of women traffic wardens in the capital.

“Women traffic wardens have set an example that there is no job that women cannot do and challenges need to be overcome to move ahead in life,” said female commuters Shehla Kulsum on Sunday. She added that said that Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) should provide greater opportunities for women to work as traffic wardens and to control the traffic of the city.

“Women are equally capable of working as traffic wardens,” motorist Maria Tabassum said, adding that initially, they may face some challenges, but after an adjustment period, not only will the wardens become adept at managing traffic but the public will accept and appreciate the efficiency of women traffic wardens.

On the other hand, a women police officer was of the view that if they are provided with the same training and opportunities as men, they can perform as well as their male counterparts.

“They [women] can better perform their job if the ITP provides them with proper training and opportunity in the traffic police,” the officer said.

The ITP was established in 2005. While the population in the twin cities and the number of cars on its roads has increased dramatically over the past decade and a half, the strength of ITP has remained stagnant at 685.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 16^th, 2020.