Maruti Suzuki Partners With Uber For Safe Driving Program

Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) has signed a MoU with Uber India to organise an initiative under which the car manufacturer will train over 30,000 individuals/Uber partner-drivers for safer driving. This new initiative will provide a platform for aspiring commercial drivers with micro-entrepreneurships to equip themselves with the necessary driving skills to work with Uber. The safe driving program will be held for a period of three months with the initial phase to be carried out in Hyderabad, Chennai and Delhi NCR-regions. In the next phase, more safe driving programs will be introduced in Mumbai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Pune.

Speaking on the new initiative, RS Kalsi, executive director (Marketing and Sales), Maruti Suzuki, said: “We are excited to partner with Uber India to train individuals in safe driving and provide micro-entrepreneurship opportunities to them. We expect to train 30,000 drivers under this programme. Through this partnership, we will be able to promote safe and responsible driving while facilitating meaningful livelihood for youth.”

As a part of the training program, qualified leads of driver-partners will be provided by Uber to Maruti Suzuki, who will carry out the commercial driving training. The drivers will undergo pre-assessment tests, theoretical training, practical training and post-training assessment under a specialised training module for 30 days. While the pre-assessment test will be handled by Uber, all the other remaining assessments will be looked after by Maruti Suzuki.

The drivers will get to familiarise themselves with basic requirements such as vehicle controls and mechanisms, road signage, rules and markings, driving in difficult conditions and maintenance of the vehicle in the theory part. It will also include fuel efficiency tips, law and driving and attitudinal change towards road safety. On the other hand, drivers will also receive practical training under which points such as driving pre-checks, risk perception, driving technique, safety driving, rules of the road and motoring skills will be covered.

Maruti Suzuki has been involved in providing driver training since the year 2000. MSIL currently has six Institutes of Driving and Traffic Research and no less than 370 Maruti Driving Schools in the country.