Many of you will be coming to the age where you qualify to get behind a steering wheel or bike handlebars and zoom off into the horizon. There's a post on the same topic by Lay Kuan, though I'm going to try to take it from a different perspective.
Introduction
The magic number for driving is 18, and you'll see why along the way. To the best of my knowledge, you can take the very first theory test (called the Basic Theory Test) in the year that you turn 18, and you can only take the final practical test (the one thing standing between you and a Driving License) in the month that you turn 18. Unless you're a guy enlisting in February or March and your birthday song is sung sometime around November, you really do not need to worry about trying to juggle timings to make things work.
The very first test you need to take is called the Basic Theory Test (BTT). It's a 45 minute test of 50 questions, on which you have to achieve a score of 90% or higher. Do so, and you receive a "Provisional Driving License" or PDL, which is valid for 6 months from the date of issue. The PDL entitles you to drive on the road while learning. The second test you need to take is called the Final Theory Test (FTT). This is somewhat more involved, but should not be too difficult to pass if you mug properly. Once you clear the FTT and all your practical lessons, you may sign up for the practical test. This is where most people fail - if they do - to meet the mark, and horror stories of irate, elderly testers abound. Passing the practical test means you get a driving license, and you and your vehicle live happily ever after.
"Nomenclature"
Vehicles in Singapore are referred to by "Classes". However since this is a classification scheme and all good biology students will know that Biodiversity exists to make your life difficult, you'll find the following terms welcoming you when you try to learn how to drive/ride:
- Class 2: Motorcycle with an engine capacity exceeding 400cc
- Class 2A: Motorcycle with an engine capacity between 201cc and 400cc
- Class 2B: Motorcycle with an engine capacity under 201cc
- Class 3: A "manual" car (three pedals under the driver's seat)
- Class 3A: An "auto" car (only two pedals, and a lot less headache when learning how to drive)
The classes extend all the way up to Class 5, the likes of which are something like a fire engine or tank. Since I doubt many of us will be driving things like that in the near future, I won't be writing about that. I also won't be writing about motorcycles, since the process is somewhat similar to that of a car with the exception that it takes a much shorter time.
Most people who intend to drive cars will learn how to drive a manual car (i.e. Class 3 and not Class 3A). The reason is that getting a license for Class 3 automatically qualifies you for Class 3A. I'm going to add another reason here based on my observation. If you intend to go overseas and rent a car to drive, you may not always be able to find an automatic car. The cost of rental for a manual car can also be cheaper, which will help if you are on a budget. The problem with opting for Class 3 over Class 3A, is that it's going to require a tiny bit more effort on your part during the learning process as you get used to using two feet to control three pedals. Once you adapt to it however, it really becomes a non-issue.
Advice: Learn to drive Class 3 cars
There are two ways to go about learning to drive. You can sign up at one of Singapore's three driving centers, or you can hire a private instructor. The choice is entirely up to you, and both culminate in a driving license.
Driving Center
Advantages:
- Coordinated system. Book lessons/tests online, pay via credit card, access e-learning facilities.
- Easy access to the driving circuit.
- Access to driving simulators (Think super-realistic arcade machine).
- Lesser delay in acquiring your driving license
- Start driving in the circuit before you acquire your PDL.
Disadvantages:
- Significantly more expensive (approx. $50-60 for 100mins).
- Normally very crowded.
- Only three centers available, if you stay in the east, you have only one center at Ubi. If you stay in the west, you have a choice of Bukit Batok or Woodlands.
Private Instructor
Advantages:
- Cheap (approx. $20-30 for an hour).
- Somewhat more accessible, since they go into the heartlands.
- Spend more time on the road, which makes for more situational experience
Disadvantages:
- You need to make sure your instructor is qualified and reliable. A proper learning car has a brake pedal in the passenger's seat next to the driver so the instructor can intervene if necessary.
- You need to pay for access to the circuit when the time comes
- You don't have the support of a system already linked with Traffic Police
- It can take slightly longer for you to get your license, and you have to book your BTT/FTT with centers either way
Advice: Choose what fits best for you. It's really a matter of preference.
Here's a bit more about the driving centers. The center at Woodlands - the Singapore Safety Driving Center (SSDC) is the newest of the lot as it has just been renovated (it used to be the oldest). You get multi-storey goodness and a Honda City to drive. There's also more slots for tests and practicals since the center has the means to serve more people. Bukit Batok Driving Center (BBDC) and the Comfort Delgro Driving Center (CDCC, at Ubi) are somewhat older, and the word is that the lanes at BBDC are quite narrow. CDCC is located in an industrial estate, so you'll get to see a lot of the long-wheelbase vehicles that you read about in your BTT booklets. There's also a fire-station just outside the entrance to the center, so it's not impossible that you may encounter a fire engine blaring it's sirens behind you. Ultimately if you decide to sign up with a center you should choose it based on traveling time. You will have to go down to the center quite a lot (approx. 30 times) so you want an easily accessible location.
Theory Lessons
Regardless of the flavour of instruction you choose (driving center or private instructor), you're going to have to visit a driving center to take your BTT, FTT and Practical Test. If you're going private, there should be a counter of some sort for you to sign up. As a private candidate it's necessary that you get your BTT before starting lessons, since all your lessons will inevitably be held on public roads.
If you're planning to be a school candidate, here's where things get a little messy, and where the official insider's guide starts. Driving centers have separate test slots for their students, and some of these slots can be as late as two months from the time you sign up. This means two months of groveling around in the circuit trying to space out your practical lessons until you can get out onto the road.
So here's what you should do. First thing you need to realize, is that you can take the BTT anywhere in Singapore, then go back to your center with the PDL and have them recognize it. The same can be said for your FTT.
The BTT and FTT are relatively trivial for anyone who's been grilled by the wonders of a rigorous academic curriculum. All questions are MCQ, and you only need to choose from three choices. Most of the time two of those choices are so immensely improbable it is possible to eliminate them even without prior knowledge. This, of course, does not mean that one should be complacent.
Advice: Before you proceed to sign up at your center of choice, visit the webpages of all the driving centers or give them a call, and ask for available dates for PRIVATE candidates. Choose the nearest one and sign up pronto.
Practical Lessons
The average number of practical lessons needed anywhere between 20 to 30 for a manual car. The reason why I give such a range is because it really depends on the individual's ability and foot coordination/sensitivity. You probably only need five or six lessons to learn all the know-how to move the car and get it to do certain things, but doing so smoothly, acquiring good judgment and getting a feel for the car takes the rest of the time. If you're signed up with a school some lessons may also be dedicated to working on the virtual simulator, familiarization with an auto-car, or reviews before your actual practical test.
Depending on how pressed for time you are, there's actually nothing stopping you from booking multiple slots in the same day. Some people book slots back to back with a ten minute break in-between sessions, so they sit in the car and chit-chat with the instructors. Some people go down from Monday to Friday, some people go down twice a month. It's really all up to you. Note, however, that you need to clear all your practical lessons before you can sign up for the practical test, which can also be a very long wait. There's unfortunately no shortcut for this.
Advice: Pace yourself. Don't rush if you don't have to. You're going to be driving people around cars containing other people, and you need to be sure you can do it SAFELY.
Practical Test
This is the big day. The person sitting to your left will no longer be a friendly instructor who will coax you through your driving, but a representative from Traffic Police wielding a big laptop. All he's going to do is tell you if he wants you to take a turn, park, or stop on the slope. You'll have to put up with him through both the driving circuit and the main roads. Accumulate more than 18 demerit points (magic number 18 again) and you fail. Mount the kerb or cross the white line at a stop sign, amongst other penalties, and you get an instant failure. If it helps, pretend that the guy's not there and that the person shaking his head in apparent dismay is really a parent who thinks you can't drive as well as them.
One thing to note is to NEVER ask the tester if you should turn at a particular junction or change lanes, or anything like that. Short of an emergency, keep quiet. If the tester wants you to take any action, he will give you ample notice. Elsewise, follow the road.
Advice: Take it easy, ignore the guy until he gives you directions, and don't drive too slowly. You can get penalized for that.
That's it. You've made it through an ultra long-winded description of getting a driving license, and if you've done everything correctly you now get to place a cute, fluorescent P plate on your front and rear windscreen. You get to go at relatively high speeds on the highways, top up fuel for your car, and no longer have to snuggle with encik and makcik on public transport.
Always remember to drive safely. With familiarity comes contempt and a very very alluring desire to step that much harder on the accelerator. Don't.
Here's a bit more about the driving centers. The center at Woodlands - the Singapore Safety Driving Center (SSDC) is the newest of the lot as it has just been renovated (it used to be the oldest). You get multi-storey goodness and a Honda City to drive. There's also more slots for tests and practicals since the center has the means to serve more people. Bukit Batok Driving Center (BBDC) and the Comfort Delgro Driving Center (CDCC, at Ubi) are somewhat older, and the word is that the lanes at BBDC are quite narrow. CDCC is located in an industrial estate, so you'll get to see a lot of the long-wheelbase vehicles that you read about in your BTT booklets. There's also a fire-station just outside the entrance to the center, so it's not impossible that you may encounter a fire engine blaring it's sirens behind you. Ultimately if you decide to sign up with a center you should choose it based on traveling time. You will have to go down to the center quite a lot (approx. 30 times) so you want an easily accessible location.
Theory Lessons
Regardless of the flavour of instruction you choose (driving center or private instructor), you're going to have to visit a driving center to take your BTT, FTT and Practical Test. If you're going private, there should be a counter of some sort for you to sign up. As a private candidate it's necessary that you get your BTT before starting lessons, since all your lessons will inevitably be held on public roads.
If you're planning to be a school candidate, here's where things get a little messy, and where the official insider's guide starts. Driving centers have separate test slots for their students, and some of these slots can be as late as two months from the time you sign up. This means two months of groveling around in the circuit trying to space out your practical lessons until you can get out onto the road.
So here's what you should do. First thing you need to realize, is that you can take the BTT anywhere in Singapore, then go back to your center with the PDL and have them recognize it. The same can be said for your FTT.
The BTT and FTT are relatively trivial for anyone who's been grilled by the wonders of a rigorous academic curriculum. All questions are MCQ, and you only need to choose from three choices. Most of the time two of those choices are so immensely improbable it is possible to eliminate them even without prior knowledge. This, of course, does not mean that one should be complacent.
Advice: Before you proceed to sign up at your center of choice, visit the webpages of all the driving centers or give them a call, and ask for available dates for PRIVATE candidates. Choose the nearest one and sign up pronto.
Practical Lessons
The average number of practical lessons needed anywhere between 20 to 30 for a manual car. The reason why I give such a range is because it really depends on the individual's ability and foot coordination/sensitivity. You probably only need five or six lessons to learn all the know-how to move the car and get it to do certain things, but doing so smoothly, acquiring good judgment and getting a feel for the car takes the rest of the time. If you're signed up with a school some lessons may also be dedicated to working on the virtual simulator, familiarization with an auto-car, or reviews before your actual practical test.
Depending on how pressed for time you are, there's actually nothing stopping you from booking multiple slots in the same day. Some people book slots back to back with a ten minute break in-between sessions, so they sit in the car and chit-chat with the instructors. Some people go down from Monday to Friday, some people go down twice a month. It's really all up to you. Note, however, that you need to clear all your practical lessons before you can sign up for the practical test, which can also be a very long wait. There's unfortunately no shortcut for this.
Advice: Pace yourself. Don't rush if you don't have to. You're going to be driving people around cars containing other people, and you need to be sure you can do it SAFELY.
Practical Test
This is the big day. The person sitting to your left will no longer be a friendly instructor who will coax you through your driving, but a representative from Traffic Police wielding a big laptop. All he's going to do is tell you if he wants you to take a turn, park, or stop on the slope. You'll have to put up with him through both the driving circuit and the main roads. Accumulate more than 18 demerit points (magic number 18 again) and you fail. Mount the kerb or cross the white line at a stop sign, amongst other penalties, and you get an instant failure. If it helps, pretend that the guy's not there and that the person shaking his head in apparent dismay is really a parent who thinks you can't drive as well as them.
One thing to note is to NEVER ask the tester if you should turn at a particular junction or change lanes, or anything like that. Short of an emergency, keep quiet. If the tester wants you to take any action, he will give you ample notice. Elsewise, follow the road.
Advice: Take it easy, ignore the guy until he gives you directions, and don't drive too slowly. You can get penalized for that.
That's it. You've made it through an ultra long-winded description of getting a driving license, and if you've done everything correctly you now get to place a cute, fluorescent P plate on your front and rear windscreen. You get to go at relatively high speeds on the highways, top up fuel for your car, and no longer have to snuggle with encik and makcik on public transport.
Always remember to drive safely. With familiarity comes contempt and a very very alluring desire to step that much harder on the accelerator. Don't.
Or, you can take the easy way out like me and get your driving license in another country :P
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