According to official statements, fewer than 25 per cent of applicants have passed since the new system was set up. Those who fail the first time cannot try again before three months have passed. If they fail a second time, they must wait a year before trying again. Unlikely, many think. Jumping to step four without passing through the first three is unfair and will not solve the problem.
Many experts agree that imposing harsher penalties is never the answer to traffic problems.
Those who can will go on violating in defiance of all penalties. After all, traffic misconduct is a manifestation of selfishness and lack of patriotic sentiment. Punishment, however, can be helpful if applied in parallel with public education, especially in schools. Interior Ministry officials have recently become more aware of the importance of educating children in this respect. The ministry has launched a traffic education programme in a number of schools in Cairo, and has awarded the school that applied it most successfully.