Police lay groundwork for 'conditional licenses' with pilot driver ability assessment system

According to Financial News, police will begin a pilot operation of a "driver ability assessment system" designed to evaluate the actual driving capabilities of high-risk drivers. Based on the results, they plan to lay the groundwork for a conditional driver’s license system targeted for introduction in the second half of 2027.
According to the police and other sources on the 10th, the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA) and the Korea Road Traffic Authority (KoROAD) will launch a pilot operation of a real-vehicle and virtual reality (VR)-based driver ability assessment system starting on the 11th. The system was developed to assess the real-world driving ability of high-risk drivers whose physical or cognitive functions have declined. Installation was completed by December last year at 19 driver’s license examination centers nationwide, including the Gangseo and Dobong Driver’s License Examination Centers in Seoul.
The driver ability assessment system was introduced to build the foundation for a conditional driver’s license regime. The police are working to introduce this system in the second half of 2027. The core idea is to allow high-risk drivers, such as elderly people with significantly reduced physical or cognitive abilities, to drive only under certain conditions. To that end, the police are converting assessment results into objective scores and are developing standards to incorporate those scores into the new system.
A police official stated, "To introduce a conditional driver’s license system, we need to convert driving ability assessments into objective scores," adding, "Through this year’s pilot operation of the driver ability assessment system, we plan to verify the link between assessment results and actual driving performance and then establish criteria to classify drivers into grades such as ‘high,’ ‘medium,’ and ‘low.’"
The pilot program will be conducted with volunteers selected from among elderly drivers aged 75 and older who are required to take traffic safety education. During the pilot period, undergoing an assessment will not be connected to administrative measures such as license revocation. However, the police expect to improve traffic safety by using the objective results to provide guidance on precautions while driving and, when necessary, to recommend voluntary surrender of driver’s licenses.
The pilot operation will begin on the 11th at the Seoul Gangseo Driver’s License Examination Center and will first be implemented at driver’s license examination centers in the Seoul area. It will then be gradually expanded nationwide.
Kim Hoseung, Director General of Public Safety and Traffic at the KNPA, said, "Through the pilot operation of the driver ability assessment system, we plan to institutionalize a framework that can objectively assess the driving capabilities of high-risk drivers and, based on this, establish the foundation for conditional licenses and other measures to enhance traffic safety for high-risk drivers."
welcome@fnnews.com Jang Yu-ha Reporter