LTO to give free driving seminars

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) will be giving free weekly driving seminars as part of the government’s effort to improve the skills and knowledge of Filipino drivers. According to LTO Chief Virginia Torres, the seminar will be conducted every Saturday and will be open to all drivers who want to improve their knowledge about driving and vehicle troubleshooting. The seminar will be conducted every Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and it will run throughout the year. The seminar is voluntary and open to everybody. However, there is a plan to make it compulsory for all PUV drivers. The LTO will conduct the driving seminar project after the series of deadly road mishaps in various areas in the country that have claimed the lives of several passengers. The project is a joint undertaking of the LTO and various transport organizations hoping to prevent or at least minimize road accidents especially those involving public utility vehicles (PUVs). In a separate interview LTO-Motor Vehicle Inspection Center chief Joel Donato said land transportation experts from the DOTC, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Center for Transportation Studies of the University of the Philippines, and the private sector will join the seminar as the resource persons. The seminar will particularly provide information on defensive driving, vehicle maintenance, actual driving, vehicle trouble shooting and even personal hygiene. Meanwhile, Orlando Marquez, president of the Liga ng Transportation at Operators ng Pilipinas (LTOP) said the seminar will also focus on accident prevention. –VVP, GMANews.TV