Stakeholder surveys

The original CCC recommendations arising from their Report on Corruption in Respect of Truck Driving Licence Applications were:

• A PDA failure automatically cancels a foreign or interstate licence.
• A licence issued under a foreign law becomes invalid three months after the holder first arrives in Western Australia.

These were the recommendations given in the "Recognition of Overseas Driver's Licences: Consultation Paper", and were referred to as Recommendation 1 and Recommendation 2 respectively.

A total of 359 surveys were received and the findings are summarised below:

• Recommendation 1 There was clear support for this recommendation, with 73% of respondents agreeing that it supports road safety.
• Recommendation 2 The most supported period for permanent visa holders to drive on their overseas licence was three months.

Additionally, there was strong support for the three month period commencing from the date the permanent visa was granted, or arrival into WA, whichever is the latter.

For visitors to WA, 61% supported a period longer than 3 months. Twelve months was considered to be the best option when considering Visa and operational issues, as well as harmonisation with other Jurisdictions. There was also strong support for the agreed period to be a continuous period in WA.

As a result of the public feedback, and slight rewording of the original CCC recommendations during the consultation phase to make them more compliant with existing WA legislation, the recommendations arising from the original CCC investigation were altered to those given below. 

• Recommendation 1 A PDA failure automatically ceases recognition of a foreign driver's licence.
• Recommendation 2 A licence issued under a foreign law becomes invalid twelve months after the holder first arrives in Australia (applies to temporary visitor visa holders only).

The altered recommendations as worded above are the ones that will be progressed for legislative implementation. 

The other important outcome of the consultation process was that it captured the following four themes that respondents consistently deemed as important.

• Road safety concerns.
• The need for the collection of crash data and / or further evidence of road safety concerns regarding overseas drivers.
• Consideration of periods that allow for a visitor to settle in WA, learn the road rules, and obtain a WA licence.
• The potential for impacts on WA tourism.

The Practical Driving Assessment (PDA) process is an integral part of obtaining a licence to drive in Western Australia. It demonstrates a driver's ability to safely drive and control a motor vehicle.

The Department of Transport is working on a Practical Driving Assessment Improvement project and ran a customer survey regarding Practical Driving Assessment availability and user experience of log books.

The survey closed on 16 April 2018.