16/09/2021

Launch of the Program for Instructors in Safe Motorcycle Driving

Together with the National Road Safety Agency of Argentina (ANSV) and the Licensing Directorate (SINALIC), we presented in the city of Guaymallén (Mendoza) the start of the Practical Specialization Program for Instructors in Safe Motorcycle Driving, which will enable those who take it to identify themselves as specialized instructors in licenses for these vehicles. This launching is one more step in the strategy that the Foundation has deployed in Argentina to address the problem of road accidents, especially focused on the most vulnerable users, such as motorcyclists.

The launching ceremony was attended by Mayor Marcelino Iglesias; Jorge Rubino, in charge of the Motorcyclists Area of the ANSV; and Franco Azzato, technical coordinator of the Fundación Gonzalo Rodríguez, who presented, among other actions, the decision to train more than 100 people in five host cities. This specialization began to be implemented two years ago in Argentina, through the implementation of a nationwide strategy designed to promote changes in road safety and safe motorcycle riding.

In addition, a government commitment was implemented aimed at generating skills in the teams of the License Issuing Centers, with the objective of achieving an improvement in the process of obtaining a driver's license, with a specific focus on the practical exam. "The main objective is to make the practical exams more demanding. Therefore, what we want to convey is that having a license is a responsibility, not a simple document. This idea also seeks to position the issuer as a reference for driving," explained Fernanda Nani Rodríguez, president of Fundación Gonzalo Rodríguez.

"One of ANSV's priorities is to take care of the lives of motorcyclists, who are the main victims of road accidents. That is why we carry out different public policies aimed at ensuring that motorcyclists ride safely, raising awareness and encouraging the use of helmets. One of these actions is the joint work with the Fundación Gonzalo Rodríguez through the training of instructors of the Driving License Issuing Centers all over the country, with the aim of providing them with the necessary tools to train new responsible motorcyclists and thus continue advancing towards a new road culture in Argentina", said the Executive Director of the National Road Safety Agency, Pablo Martínez Carignano.

In conjunction with this launching, it was proposed to work throughout this week on responsible motorcycle This campaign aims to raise awareness, especially among young people, about the importance of using safety elements and to teach them about their rights and responsibilities on public roads. This campaign is the result of a risk perception study that the Foundation developed between July and August of this year in different provinces of NEA/NOA/CUYO and Central Argentina, in order to compare accident rate data.

In Argentina during 2020, a very particular year in terms of mobility, the total number of people killed in road accidents was 3,138 people, 44% of whom were drivers or passengers of motorcycles. In the midst of this situation, new policies began to be established. For example, the municipality of Oberá in Misiones was the first in the region to differentiate driving courses for cars and motorcycles. And the municipality of Bella Vista was the first in the country to separate motorcycle licensing courses.

Finally, within this road safety strategy for motorcyclists that we are developing, a Seminar on Motorcyclist Safety is planned to be held in a blended mode, which will address the problem from different aspects: laws and regulations, license issuance, training, infrastructure, safety elements and vehicle safety, among others.