BRAC Driving School was launched in 2012 as a feasible measure to tackle the alarming increase of road fatalities over the years. BRAC commissioned Hubert Ebner (India) Pvt Ltd to prepare training materials and conduct the Training of Trainers (TOT) for the driving trainers recruited by BRAC. The school uses contemporary driving training technologies such as, driving simulators, visual impairment system, and P-Drive (digital driving testing device) to train the students.
BRAC Driving School primarily has two training programmes which are Shurakkha (defensive driving training) for commercial vehicle drivers and basic driving for the general public. Besides, the programme took up a project called Four Wheels To Freedom which trained 75 professional female chauffeurs to provide them with an income generation tool.
Driver's training for women
Women empowerment is deeply rooted in BRAC's values and is also reflected through BRAC Driving School. The project 'Four Wheels to Freedom' was initiated with the target to include women in driving profession and to provide an income generation skill to poor, disadvantaged women who would otherwise spend their life managing their households.
Under the project, a total of 75 women chauffeurs were trained through a two-month long residential training. After completion, they were presented with BRTA approved professional driving licenses, and today they are employed at reputed INGOs, MNCs, banks and other institutions in Bangladesh.
Shurakkha - defensive driving training
As the 2012 NRTA report stated, 1263 fatal road accidents saw the involvement of heavy vehicles on that year. The highways of Bangladesh see a major proportion of vehicular accidents that involve buses, goods carriers, human haulers and other types of heavy transport.
No matter how safe the vehicles or the vigilance of the general people, road safety cannot be achieved without driver’s training, skill and right attitude to drive safely. In light of this, BRAC Road Safety Programme introduced Shurakkha - a training targeted towards in-service commercial bus and truck drivers, majority of whom have not been through institutional driving training. It is common in Bangladesh where such drivers receive their training through apprenticeship from another experienced but uncertified driver. As a result, most of these drivers, although performing at professional capacity, are unaware of the many road safety rules and practices. This training is also fully residential.
Basic driving training
Since November 2012, BRAC Driving School made its basic driving training facilities accessible for all. Anyone interested to take proper driving lessons under expert guidance are encouraged to get enrolled.
Training conducted with the P-Drive system
- Twelve days of residential Training of Instructors (TOI) for instructors of private driving training schools
- Thirty five days of non-residential basic driving training for all to obtain both professional and non-professional driving license
Facilities available
- Modern driving simulator
- Visual impairment system
- Seatbelt convincer
- Dual controlled training vehicles
- P-Drive
Training of instructors
BRAC's monitoring department carried out a survey about the state of driving schools and driving instructors in the country, with the following findings. There were 362 driving training schools and 418 driving instructors in Bangladesh in 2012. Of these instructors, less than 108 had a legally required instructors license. BRAC Driving School introduced this training to fill the gap in terms of improving the quality of driving instructors in the country.
The school ensures that the trainee driving instructors know everything in order to conduct driving training: basic knowledge on driving, knowledge on road safety, and how to transfer their knowledge to their trainees. Driving instructors learn various tools, techniques and methods from this training.
Locations
BRAC Driving School (Ashkona, Uttara)
BRAC Learning Centre Uttara (Opposite of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and Hajj Camp), Dhaka – 1230
Mobile: 8801730374499, 8801730348531
BRAC Driving School (Gulshan)
Tejgaon Link Road (Niketon, Gate: 03), Gulshan, Dhaka- 1212.
Mobile: 8801704166301, 8801729071908
BRAC Driving School (Uttara R/A)
House-13, Road- 12, Sector- 12, Uttara, Dhaka- 1230.
Mobile: 8801713158265, 8801719820920
BRAC Driving School (Dhanmondi)
36, Mohammadia Super Market, Sobhanbag, Dhanmondi, Dhaka-1209.
Mobile: 8801819323268, 8801729070989
BRAC Driving School (Demra)
Paity (Main Road), Staff Quarter, Demra, Dhaka-1360.
Mobile: 8801338480550, 8801729070562
BRAC Driving School (Chattogram)
Choto Pole, Agrabad Access Road, Agrabad, Chattogram- 4100
Mobile: 8801891454899, 8801730347157
BRAC Driving School (Jashore)
Kathal tala main road (west side of Bablatala bridge), Sadar, Jashore- 7401
Mobile: 8801730322015, 8801787669655
BRAC Driving School (Rajbari)
Kallyanpur main road, Sadar, Rajbari- 7711
Mobile: 8801717809648, 8801740280327
Email: bds@brac.net , roadsafety@brac.net