Driving Pakistan

[Manric Hock]

Herepeople drive on the left side of the road because Pakistan is a former British colony. Though, sometimes, people prefer to drive on the right-side of the road. I have seen cars, motorcycles, and bikes going the wrong way. Despite the number of horns blaring at them, the drivers really don't care they're going the wrong way.

There really are no rules for driving here. Yes, there are laws, but people often do as they please. For example, even if there are demarcated lanes, people don't stay in them. There are traffic police, but they can't control everyone, especially during rush hours.

As in other countries, not everyone uses their blinkers, but it's more dangerous here. One day I was going home from the market with my driver and my aunt. We indicated that we were going to turn left, when out of nowhere the car in front of us swerved to the right, trying to get over so he could go straight. He apparently saw the light was green and decided he wanted to straight instead of turning left to avoid a traffic jam. Our driver slammed on the breaks to avoid hitting him. There was nothing we could do, but yell, "Idiot."

A person's socio-economic status often dictates their driving style. Lower-income people tend to ride on crowded buses, bikes, or motorcycles. Middle-income people tend to drive older Suzuki's and Hyundai's, while the upper middle class tend drive newer models Hondas or Toyotas, and the extremely wealthy ride in Mercedes and BMWs. The middle class, upper middle class and extremely wealthy have drivers. Some even have two or three drivers.

There are more motorcycles on the road than any other vehicle. Most are made by Honda or Yamaha and are red and black with a bit of bright blue. Most people cover the gas tank with cloths to prevent getting burned from the heat of the tank.

Motorcycles are made for one to two people, but here it's common to see a whole family riding on a bike. First sits a young child, followed by the father, then another child, the mother, and finally another older child in the back. I have even seen four grown men on one motorcycle. Although both men and women drive in Pakistan, I have never seen a woman riding a bike alone.

The bikes weave in and out of traffic, sometimes without even looking to see if there are any cars in front or beside them. One day, on the way to pick up my cousins from school, a motorcycle side-swiped our car. The bike had three people riding on it and was attempting to move to the far left side of the road. The motorcycle slipped on the slick, dust-covered road and a woman fell off. We didn't stop the car, though my aunt wanted to, because men would've stopped and stared given that it was a female driver. I think motorcyclists tend to be the most erratic drivers, but they're also the ones you have to watch out for the most.

Car drivers are just as crazy. On quite a few occasions I've seen a line of cars going up a one-way street. Last week I was in Main Market Gulberg in Lahore, when a line of cars drove up the wrong way. My driver started honking the horn and yelling for the other cars to back up. I told him there wasn't anything we could do, so just be patient. We waited for a few cars to pass, and then we slid past the rest of the cars going the wrong way. I closed my eyes. The road was so narrow; I was scared we were going to hit another car. I told the driver "I'm closing my eyes" in Urdu. He told me to not worry, he's a good driver. He is a good driver, but I still kept my eyes closed.

The buses that people ride on are very crowded, almost like a New York subway car at rush hour. There are big colorful buses and small white economy sized vans. Laborers and house workers ride the buses to work; students take college-specific buses to school. Most of the time the women sit up front in the passenger seats, while the men will sit in the back.

Rickshaws are the most interesting of all vehicles in Pakistan. They are three-wheeled motorized vehicles. Basically it looks like a motorcycle with seats in the back and a roof on top. Legally, only three people are allowed to sit in a rickshaw at a time, but during rush hour I have seen six or seven people sitting in one. I've never personally ridden in a rickshaw, but have wanted to for years. I tried to ride in one a few years ago, but got too scared and got out. It's just so different from anything I've ever ridden in. Many people use rickshaws as taxis to get to and from school or work. Many students work out a deal with the rickshaw drivers to take them from their house to school; they pay the drivers either weekly or monthly.

I've never driven in Pakistan myself, and I'm not quite sure I'm ready to try. I need to conquer my fear of riding in a rickshaw first! But if a person can survive driving and riding in Pakistan, they can survive driving and riding anywhere.

In Pakistan, the driving licence is the official document which authorises its holder to operate various types of motor vehicles (depending on the type of licence) on publicly accessible roads. Driving licences can be obtained by submitting an application to any licensing authority in the applicant's district.

Any person at least 18 years old can apply for a driving licence. The applicant must show their National Identity Card and must be able to read a car number plate from a distance of 20.5 metres (65').

After fulfilling the medical tests the applicant is eligible for getting the computerised learner's permit. The learner's permit is valid for six months normally. And after that the person is eligible for a Computerised Driving Licence. In this six months time Candidates have to pass through a series of tests. Phase 1 requires to pass a computerised written test, followed by road signs test. If the candidate fails in any of the phase 1 tests, then the candidate shall retry phase 1 after a gap of 42 days. Passing requires at least 50% correct answers. After Phase 1, Phase 2 is a practical test in which the candidate is tested to drive in narrow spaces, and park in a narrow space. If during the test, the candidate's car touches any of the poles, then a retest can take place after 42 days.

The National Database & Registration Authority has developed an RFID-based driver's licence that bears a license holder's unique, personal information as well as stores data regarding traffic violations and tickets issued / outstanding penalties. Data is stored in two halves of the chip. One half contains the personal information of the licence holder and cannot be changed or modified. The second half is re-writable, where history of violations can be recorded. At the end of the day, violation data is transferred from the policeman's handheld device to local police station which is then transferred to the central server (at district/state level) through secure channel that ensures data security and integrity. The e-Driver's Licence system has been developed to automatically revoke driving rights in case of traffic violation. Comprehensive data of violations is electronically stored and available to the authorities. The e-driver's licence also allows the authorities to provide for supplementary provisions and services. The RFID driver's licence enables improvements in identity verification, privacy protection and highway safety.

If a person has a valid driving licence in Pakistan, he/she can verify the status of his/her licence through licence authority website of his province. He/she has to put his/her CNIC number to the system. The system provides following information of that licensee.[1]

Driving licence in Pakistan usually issued for 5 years. After completion of 5 years, a renewal of licence is required for further 5 years. For this purpose, a licensee should visit his nearest driving licence office with required documents. Following documents are required to submit.[2]

To hire any vehicle you will need to provide a passport copy, credit card and a valid driving licence from your home country, or a valid international driving licence. However, if you have been issued with a residence visa, you will need to have a valid UAE driving licence.

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Deviant driving behaviors are considered as the main cause of Road Traffic Accidents in Pakistan. This research is founded on the premise that driving behaviors are mediated by attitudinal and motivational factors. It advocates that rather than simply aggregating drivers' responses or a-priori classification of them based on their personal characteristics, adoption of segmentation technique is more useful to look at multiple factors provoking aberrant driving behavior in combination and not just in isolation. For this, the study generated an Attitudinal Questionnaire, inspired by the Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB: Ajzen, 1991), and extended violation-scale of modified Driver Behavior Questionnaire (DBQ: Lawton et al., 1997). Attitudinal and behavioral items are first factor analyzed. Then, cluster analysis is performed on extracted attitudinal factors which classified sample driving population into four relatively homogenous and distinct groups of drivers. The results demonstrated the explanatory utility of the market segmentation approach to systematically relate the interaction between attitudes, behaviors and socio-demographic characteristics of drivers. It is concluded that the approach is successful in distinguishing safe drivers from unsafe driver and therefore, can legitimately form the basis of road safety interventions. Finally, the findings are used to recommend targeted information-based road safety solutions with a focus on the diverse characteristics of each of the identified segments.

This information is provided as a guide only. You should get definitive information from the Pakistani authorities. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is not liable for any inaccuracies in this information.

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