Since we were kids, we had always dreamed of driving a car. But what really stopping us from driving? The licence. Yes, it is easy as we think of but why can it stop us? When people reach 18 and above they will think of applying for their driving licence but the fees will make them think twice.

The fees to get a driver’s licence were allegedly set to increase by up to 100 percent starting from last year due to the proposed changes to the driving curriculum by the Road Transport Department (JPJ).

Driving licence fees would normally increase in time as well as in line with inflation. However, the increase is quite drastic which may lead to dissatisfaction and negative reaction from the public. If Malaysians don’t protest loudly enough about the increase in driving licence fees, it will keep on increasing in the future without us noticing it.

According to the JPJ, the rise of the fees is due to some of new curriculum system which would significantly change the teaching methods and duration of the course provided by driving institutes in Malaysia.

The driving licence is needed nowadays, but because of this issue, people will think twice of having a driving licence because some of them could not afford to pay the fees. The JPJ must reconsider about the increment of the fees that everyone must pay.

Such case is because the driver’s licence is considered as an obligation for everyone to have, it is impossible for oneself not to hold a driver’s licence in this modern era because driving our own vehicle happens to be in our daily routine to cope with the life in a developing city like Kuala Lumpur itself.

For centuries, people have been using vehicles to transport themselves from one place to another. In the early days people used animals such as horses as their transportation while in the present days, people rely on vehicles to travel. So why has the JPJ to burden people, especially students, with the high fees to get a licence just to drive on our roads?

It seems ridiculous as these students could use the money to spend on other necessities such as student fees, books and house rent, not to mention extra classes.

My suggestion is, the JPJ should do more research before they set up the rate of the fee because most of the people who apply for a driver’s licence happen to be people who are either still in schools or in universities.