Monday, March 30, 2009

Getting a Driver's License in Taiwan

Badges? We don’t need no stinkin’ badges!

My friend, Richard, from Australia, has been here about two months. Now he wants to get a driver’s license. I have been here off and on for almost 13 years so I decided to go with him. I didn’t want to rush into anything you know. So last Wednesday we went, accompanied by his wife, Bonnie, to the Motor Vehicles Department or whatever they call it here to take our written test and then our driving test.

We took the written but not the driving test. We both failed with 77.5% on our tests. The test questions are strange. One would think that after practicing online a little and using 42 years of driving experience and common sense I would be able to pass the test with the required 85%. But no. And to think I only needed 70% to pass my private pilot written, which is what, I think, I got….

The questions don’t only ask about driving, but about what the fines are for driving incorrectly. Also, some of the signs are strange. In the book I had to study a few years ago t had about 25 pictures of signs that all seemed to show rocks falling off the cliff. Looking closely on the online test, one of those rocks is really a car, and the sign means that there is a cliff on the left, not rocks falling from the right. It looked like a rock to me but luckily the three answers led to the right answer. Here are a few of the questions:

1. When driving on 2 lanes of 2 ways, in the line division parts, it is allowed to pass, but not allowed to compete paralelly. [the spelling is not mine]

2. Applicant with illegal methods to take the test, the test cancelled. If the applicant already has driver’s license, the license will be annulled and with no rights to apply for driving test for 2 years

3. No person is allowed inside the trunk

4. When driving parallely with other cars, the car in the front needs to stop: (1) must turn on the right signal light and brakelight or hand gesture to notify (2) stop any time, no need for signal and hand gesture (3) slow down then stop slowly

5. Perpendicular yellow lines are: (1) car lane lines (2) direction division lines (3) car direction lines

6. Perpendicular white lines are: (1) zebra pedestrian lines (2) car lane lines (3) road side lines

7. Full horizaontal line is: (1) parking line (2) no passing line (3) stop line.


8. In a case of hit and run, the car owner who is informed to present at the scene and fails to do so without justification, or fails to provide the information of the driver is punishable by suspension of license plate for: (1) 3 to 6 months; (2) 1 to 3 months; (3) 1 to 2 years.

9. When you are driving and see the cars on neighboring lanes have turned off the turn signals, you must: (1) accelerate and pass (2) slow down and yield (2) compete and race (1) land mark (2) fog direction (3) road direction

10. And one of my favorites: (the character means east)



There seems to be an emphasis more on what penalty you may receive than what you should do versus what you shouldn’t do. If the answers were based on what actually happens in real life, most of the answers would be: do whatever. The questions even have narration in English. The question is read three times with the answers. Usually it is read correctly but once the writing said: It is correct… but the narration said: It is not correct… I think if I fail this week I will challenge the results. That should be interesting. I’ll see how good my Chinese is, or if I can bluff or bully my way into passing. Maybe it just needs a red envelope, you think?

For the driving test I am going to rent the car at the test facility. It costs NT$80, or about US$2.50. I didn’t have my registration with me last week and I also discovered that if I took the test in an automatic, I wouldn’t be licensed to drive a stick shift. I will still have to take a motorcycle test and my bike is a Yamaha 150 so it qualifies as a big motorcycle (over 90cc to 205cc) but not as a great big motorcycle (or some other strange name for anything over 250cc).

I may wait until I go back to the US this summer and get a motorcycle endorsement on my Arizona driver’s license and then come back and bypass the 30 hours of schooling and one year regular motorcycle license requirement to get a great big motorcycle license. Not that I will ever use it, of course. A big bike is not real practical here. No advantage in traffic unless one still rides it like a scooter, and no great advantage in parking either. Great Big Motorcycles can now be ridden on the freeway thanks to WTO. I haven’t seen any on the freeway and I don’t think I would like to ride on there anyway. Cars here don’t have a lot of respect for other cars let alone motorcycles. It could be dangerous. I’ll stick to my Chrysler Voyager, with or without a license.

Oh, you want the answers? 1.T, 2.F, 3.T, 4.1, 5.2, 6.2, 7.3, 8.2, 9.2, 10.3 How did you do?