Persons with hearing disabilities not prohibited from holding PSV license – deputy transport minister

Current policy by the ministry of transport does not prohibit persons with disabilities (PwDs) who are hearing- and speech-impaired from applying for a vocational public service vehicle (PSV) e-hailing license, deputy transport minister Datuk Hasbi Habibollah said in the Dewan Rakyat today, reported Bernama.

Persons with disabilities of this classification may apply for the license with health verification from a registered medical practitioner, the deputy transport minister said, in reply to Subang member of parliament Wong Chen, who asked about the guidelines for allowing disabled drivers with A or A1 licenses to work as e-hailing drivers, and the government’s plan to allow them to obtain PSV licenses.

The A license is for disabled persons to operate motorcycles with an unladen weight of no more than 450 kg, while the A1 license is for the PwD operation of cars with an unladen weight of no more than 3,500 kg.

At present, the public service vehicle driver licensing policy does not allow disabled drivers with an A or A1 license to apply for a vocational license of any class. “This matter is stated under Section 30, Road Transport Act 1987 which requires the applicant to make a declaration in a prescribed form on suffering any illness or physical disability that may cause driving to be a danger to others,” Hasbi said.

In reply to Rantau Panjang member of parliament Datuk Siti Zailah Mohd Yusoff who asked if there are exceptions for disabled persons in the e-hailing sector, transport minister Anthony Loke confirmed that there is an exemption given, however the physical disability of the A or A1 license holder needs to be considered.

“Some may not be allowed at the exemption level but as in our policy, we are indeed ‘pro’ [in favour of] disabled drivers because we see that they are also able to contribute to the community, and are able to be prudent drivers in the e-hailing service,” the transport minister said.

“For us, as long as they can prove that they are physically able to drive, we will try to give exceptions. They only need an exemption from the ministry of health in the registration form and we will study and try to improve the matter,” Loke added.

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