Toyota, obliged for having 50 Driving schools across India by 2020, following its mission-\'Safest Car with Safest Driver\'. A Toyota Driving School, managed by one of the brand’s dealerships, the Lakozy Toyota, has been opened in Mumbai Today. The launch has been announced by Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM). This driving school is Toyota’s First such school in Mumbai and is India’s 11th. It is an attempt towards Road safety which follows the Mission of the Company.
Hemant Patil the Assistant Regional Transport Officer, Andheri, Mumbai was invited as the Chief guest at the inauguration. Also present there were the dealer principal, Lakozy Toyota-Mr Amar Pawar and the Deputy Managing Director, Toyota Kirloskar Motor-Mr N Raja. N Raja represented the senior management of the company.
The Company’s Mission is not just to produce Good cars which are friendly to the customers and good to drive but to improve the safety measures of the customers on the Road. Toyota Kirloskar Motor has launched ten more such driving schools in India in places like Kochi, Lucknow, Hyderabad (two), Chennai (two), Kolkata, Faridabad, Vijayawada and Surat. The Toyota Driving School focuses on responsible and safe driving and thus, making each of its student a responsible and safe driver.
The School focuses on improvement of quality and for this, its utmost focus is on a comprehensive driver-training program. The program is designed such that there are practical and futuristic training models eg. the driver-simulator mechanism. The curriculum altogether would cover the below topics:
- Traffic management, rules and discipline.
- Safe and correct driving concepts.
- Manners and responsibilities of a driver.
- Simulation of driving in a real vehicle before getting on to the road.
- All aspects of practical driving on roads.
- Driving on various roads under different climate conditions.
- Know your car: Basic maintenance and repairs.
- Emergency handling.
- Systematic evaluation and feedback.
‘Simulator’ is the key control of the training program and provides best of experience to the learners before they start driving on the Road. Here, the new learners get a platform to learn the basics of driving and all car controls like steering and accelerator, brake and gear-shifts etc. The training is designed in such a way that the learners are made to go through various road and weather conditions like fog, dim light, and uphill and downhill terrain, so as to perfect their driving before moving to roads.
The learning curriculum is such that the beginners are firstly provided with a driving school\'s standard learning package but along with it the Toyota Driving School would offer an additional learning module so that the students could be able to design a learning module of their own choice.
In order to give a realistic driving experience, Toyota, in the simulator has included features like the instrument panel, steering, and seats of an actual Etios car.
"The simulator is the first car simulator in India with Full High Definition Computer graphics in an immersive Curved Projection environment, and it is the first simulator in India with real complete car cabin along with actual car gear," said N Raja, deputy MD, Toyota Kirloskar Motor. "In addition, it also offers extensive local language support for effective training and extensive sessions for both novice and advanced drivers.”
Commenting on the launch of the new Toyota Driving School, Amar Pawar, Dealer Principal - Lakozy Toyota said, "It is a privilege for us to be associated with Toyota Kirloskar Motor in contributing towards improving road safety in Mumbai and playing an active role in their endeavour to promote good driving habits amongst citizens.
Increasing population and rising traffic in urban areas have compromised on road safety, leading to an increase in road accidents. The steady rise in the number of road mishaps in the city is an issue that needs to be addressed promptly; and with our driving schools we take on the onus of educating our citizens on achieving the ultimate safety mission of zero accidents. We believe that the Toyota Driving School – with Toyota\'s trainers and a comprehensive curriculum – will be able to improve the behaviour amongst the people in our city."
N Raja said, "As per the latest statistics, in India, more than 1,50,000 people are killed each year in traffic accidents. That\'s about 400 fatalities a day and primary reason for road accidents are poor road safety practices.
Road safety goes beyond the transport sector, with a direct impact on public health, societies, and economies. Road traffic crashes cost most countries three percent of their gross domestic product. Road safety is an inherently cross-sectoral issue. Real progress can only happen if all relevant stakeholders unite their efforts. As safety leaders in the industry, it is our primary mission to ensure the safest cars with the safest drivers in the country and significantly reduce traffic accidents with our safety initiatives. Through these driving schools, we aim to bring down the rising number of road mishaps in the country caused majorly due to human error.”
Toyota is a Great success in its Mission by getting enrolled over 5,800 students in its Driving School to till date. The Company is determined to launch 50 such schools across India by 2020, hence ensuring their traffic safety and Toyota’s commitment to providing the best experience to its invaluable customers.