Toyota opens its first driving school in Mumbai

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) today announced the launch of the Toyota Driving School in Mumbai, in pursuance of its safety mission of 'Safest Car with Safest Driver'. Managed by one of Toyota's dealerships, Lakozy Toyota, it is the company’s first driving school in Maharashtra, Mumbai and its 11^th in India. 

The Toyota Driving School launch saw the presence of chief guest Hemant Patil, Assistant Regional Transport Officer, Andheri, Mumbai along with Amar Pawar, dealer principal - Lakozy Toyota, along with the senior management of Toyota Kirloskar Motor represented by N Raja, Deputy Managing Director. 

To improve road safety culture in the country, Toyota Kirloskar Motor has launched ten other driving schools across India at Kochi, Lucknow, Hyderabad (2), Chennai (2), Kolkata, Faridabad, Vijayawada and Surat. 

Part of the company’s sharp focus on safety, the Toyota Driving School places extreme importance on making every student a responsible and safe driver. The curriculum will be a comprehensive driver training program that will boast of high quality, practical and futuristic training models like the driver simulator mechanism. To make this experience as realistic as possible, Toyota has incorporated features like the instrument panel, steering, and seats of an actual Etios car.

The curriculum will comprehensIvely cover the following topics:  
- Traffic management, rules and discipline 
- Safe and right driving concepts 
- Manners and responsibilities of a driver 
- Simulation of driving on real vehicle before getting onto road 
- All aspects of practical driving on road
- Driving on various road and climate conditions
- Know your car - Basic maintenance and repairs 
- Emergency handling
- Systematic evaluation and feedback

Commenting on this new Toyota Driving School launch, Amar Pawar, Dealer PrIncIpal - Lakozy To'Iota 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 endeavor to promote good driving habits amongst citizens. Increasing population and rising traffic in urban areas has compromised on road safety, leading to 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 Toyota Driving School with Toyota's trainers and a comprehensive curriculum, will be able to behavior amongst the people in our city." 

N Raja, deputy MD, Toyota Kirloskar Motor said, "In our continuous efforts to make road safety a habit among commuters, we are delighted to launch our first driving school in Maharashtra, Mumbai. As per the latest statistics, in India, more than 150,000 people are killed each year in traffic accidents. That's about 400 fatalities a day and primary reason of 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 3 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 safest cars with safest drivers in the country and slgnificantl, reduce the traffic accidents with our safety initiatives.”

“We at Toyota have established Driving Schools across the country, in line with our mission of 'Safest Car with Safest Driver'. With futuristic training modules coupled with world class technology, extensive training offered by professional trainers and an all-encompassing curriculum comprising of theoretical-practical sessions of high standards, we aim to develop responsible road users who shall be the change agents in promoting road safety to thelarger society. 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. In addition, it also offers extensive local language support for effective training and extensive sessions for both novice and advance drivers. Through these driving schools, we aim to bring down the rising number of road mishaps in the country caused majorly due to human error,” he added.

The simulator, a key part of the teaching program, is expected to provide hands-on experience. Learners can practice all car controls like steering, accelerator, brake and gear shift before they take the actual vehicle on the road. The simulators can also create various road and weather conditions like fog, dim light, uphill and downhill terrain. While there will be a standard learning package for beginners, the Toyota Driving School will also offer the flexibility of additional learning modules so that learners can design a curriculum of their choice. 

The Toyota Driving School has till date enrolled over 5,800 students. By 2020 the company plans to cross 50 such schools across India, voicing their traffic safety commitment louder.