The transport ministry has set up a special task force to address the large backlog of candidates waiting to take their driving test. Having surfaced last year, the issue remains unresolved.

Transport minister Anthony Loke said that the backlog was caused by the closure of driving institutes in the country during the Covid-19 pandemic three years ago, initially brought about by the implementation of the first movement control order (MCO) in March 2020. During that period, driving courses were stopped and only essential service industries were allowed to operate.

Driving institutes were eventually allowed to operate from June 2020, but a second and third MCO, as well as a full movement control order (FMCO) in 2021 brought operations to a halt again for another extended period of time.

With an estimated 600,000 candidates undergoing driving courses and tests at driving institutes annually, Loke said this had resulted in a huge backlog. “This does not mean they (candidates) could not obtain their driving licence, but the waiting time is long,” he said.

Loke said the task force, headed by the road transport department (JPJ), will find ways to overcome the backlog as well as expedite the process of obtaining a driving licence, Bernama reports. A year ago, former transport minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong also attempted to tackle the issue, instructing JPJ to deal with the build-up.