Sep 30, 2020 (Japan Times) - The National Police Agency plans to move safety lectures for certain driver’s license renewals online as part of the government’s push to digitalize administrative procedures and as a way to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, agency officials said Tuesday.
The agency will introduce an online video lecture for so-called excellent drivers, who have held a license for five or more continuous years and have no record of traffic violations or accidents. Such drivers are also called “gold license drivers†due to the color of their five-year licenses.
The NPA plans to begin the initiative on a trial basis in the next fiscal year or later at one model police headquarters.
It will determine whether to expand the scheme nationwide after seeing the results of the trial.
The agency included some ¥3.8 billion for digitalizing police duties and promoting remote working, including expenses for the online lecture, in its budget request for fiscal 2021.
License renewals are conducted at driver’s license exam centers and police stations, and they have struggled to cope with novel coronavirus measures as many people come to apply for renewals.
By making the lecture available online, the agency hopes to shorten waiting times and ease crowding of renewal facilities.
