60% of Brussels candidates fail their driving test
Joris Van Roy
Posted On October 21, 2019
Brussels’ Mobility Ministe,r Elke Van den Brandt (Groen), reckons there is a major problem with 60% of candidates failing for the driving test, but the solution proposed might even cost them more than today /Belga
In 2018, only 36,37% of aspirant drivers in the Brussels’ Region succeeded in passing the theoretical driving test. For the practical driving test, only 40% succeeded. In 2017, it was even worse: only 35%.
This was answered by the new Brussels Mobility Minister, Elke Van den Brandt (Groen), to a question by MR-MP, Anne-Charlotte d’Ursel. According to the minister, some 61.000 people were subject to the theoretical exam, and some 30.000 did the practical driving test. Only slightly more than 40% passed.
A real problem
Van den Brandt reckons that there is a real problem here. One of the solutions proposed is to give more time for the tests, prolonging them from 45 minutes to one hour, for instance. This would permit more time for the examinator to prepare the candidate for the test, and for evaluating afterward, the minister says. But this will cost more. A decision is not taken yet.
And the costs for the candidates are already reasonably high, the liberal MP argued. “For the method with the driving school, one has to pay some 1.200 euros for roughly 20 hours, while choosing for free guidance costs at least 150 euros. In case of repeated failures, this could account for up to thousands of euros. It’s important, though, to reinforce the pedagogical aspect,” d’Ursel says.
Regional matter
Anne-Charlotte d’Ursel wanted to know whether making the driving tests a regional matter in 2018 affected these figures. But according to the minister’s cabinet, the majority of the reforms have taken effect from November 2018, and global statistics for 2019 aren’t available yet.
In 2018, the number of people succeeding increased slightly, but the exam centers confirm today that candidates are increasingly less prepared when they present themselves.
Since June 2017, the theoretical driving test has been more stringent in Belgium. A survey conducted by the Flemish mobility club, VAB, in August 2018 showed that barely 45% of those who want to get their theoretical driving license obtain it at the first attempt. Another notable finding was that a double number of drivers are being caught without a driver’s license.
60 % des candidats au permis de conduire en échec
