Nelso wrote:MrFaulty wrote:I get a bit fed up of people trying to introduce stupid levels of rules and regulations in order to stop the inevitable, all it really does is cause a pain in the arse and a waste of time and money.
Rant over
I don't want them to introduce stupid levels of rules. I just want them to weed out the shit riders/drivers by requiring them to have greater skills in riding/driving to get their license in the first place. It should not be the expectation that everyone is entitled to get a license. Not everyone has the spatial awareness and motor skills to do it safely/competently, so they should be discouraged from getting their license rather than given a number of chances to pass an invalid and oversimplified test that is set at such a level, that the incompetent can achieve success. I think you would find that if you had more competent drivers/riders, you could increase speed limits and decrease the amount of rules and regulations that have been put in place to try to prevent the inevitable. The real problem is what Leanne said, the government rely on the revenue created by the entire population owning and driving vehicles and by having rules in place that 90% of the population regularly break and get fined for the privilege.
Whilst I agree with the sentiment, the issue is it could potentially cause greater problems than it fixes. As it stands currently, holding a licence is a right and not a privilege.
If you raise the bar more will not pass, which is ultimately the goal to have a higher average of driver, problem is we don't have the support and infrastructure to have more people requiring public transport to get to work and the associated problems with a less mobile society. Australia is very spread out and own vehicle transport is a part of the fabric of Australia.
However imagine if 3% more than currently do failed and could not meet the standard, that would be 3% less rego, less fuel excise, car sales and support industries and more load on the public system plus lower employment or being under employed, the scenario could be worse than what we currently have and probably has something to do with why they don't raise the standard.
It makes no sense that motorcyclists have to 3 days of instruction in NSW but a car licence requires 0 time of formal training. You have to wonder why especially if you believe the hype that since they introduced it motorcycle deaths as a percentage has significantly decreased.