Learner drivers will be required to have completed at least 86 hours of training before applying for road tests and obtaining driving licenses when a new guideline is implemented in Guangdong Province.

Chen Zhichang, deputy chief of the Guangdong Provincial Communications Department, said at a meeting Wednesday the new guidelines required 26 hours of driving theory training and 60 hours of driving training, one-third more than the previous 40.5-hour driving training.

The department will launch province-wide checks to weed out driving schools that fail to strictly comply with the new guidelines.

A total of 560,000 new drivers were licensed in 2004 and drivers were blamed for 83 percent of the road accidents last year.

The implementation of the new guidelines will mean a rise in training costs to at least 50 yuan (US$6.04) per hour, a driving school manager was quoted by the Guangzhou Daily as saying.

The provincial communications authority is considering a benchmark price after soliciting views from the provincial price bureau.

Unlike the previous textbook, the new book, which was compiled based on the guidelines, contains clear and direct illustrations to explain basic driving skills and teach learners how to react in emergencies.

The new textbook also contains traffic rules for driving in mountain areas and information on car maintenance with advice on how to solve common and frequent problems.

The new guidelines require learners to have at least two hours independent driving without coaching.

There were five accidents involving deaths of at least three people in January and February in Guangzhou, an increase of 4.76 percent over the corresponding period last year.

Traffic police will strengthen driving tests this year and driving schools will bear partial responsibility if new drivers with less than three years’ driving experience are involved in traffic accidents.

(Xinhua News Agency March 19, 2005)