DAMMAM — Many citizens have complained about the dangers posed by expatriate drivers who have limited driving skills and are still new to driving rules in the country, Al-Hayat reported. They said extreme care and attention should be taken when the car in front has a sign that says “driver under training” because it means the expatriate behind the wheel is not a good driver. One of the citizens told Al-Hayat the last thing crowded city roads need is to become a training venue for drivers from Asian countries. He said: “Our city roads are full of potholes, detours, and several other problems. The problem is most of those drivers under training drive expensive cars and practice on the roads before joining a driving school and applying for a license.” Sultan Sulaiman, another citizen, said he tries to avoid traveling behind cars with such signs. “You see these signs on literally everywhere you go. “If a driver does not know how to drive, why has he been recruited in the first place?” In his opinion, the roads have become the favorite place for expatriates to learn how to drive. Muhammad Ahmad, citizen, described such driving trainees as a time bomb that might go off anytime. He almost got killed once because of an expatriate driver who appeared to be learning how to drive on the roads. The Labor Ministry has required all recruitment offices not to bring over any expatriate driver who does not have a driver's license at his own country. This is one of the Foreign Affairs Ministry's requirements for issuing visas for drivers coming from abroad. The ministry said it is not its responsibility to crack down on expatriate trainee drivers or set mechanisms to prevent accidents caused by those drivers, stressing that this is the responsibility of other government agencies. The Foreign Affairs Ministry's director of media Tayseer Al-Mufaraj said each expatriate driver who arrives in the country is required to have a driver's license and take a driving test before being allowed on the road. If a driver does not have enough skills to operate a vehicle, he should be replaced by the recruitment office with another employee who knows how to drive, Al-Mufaraj said.
