Four people are run over during a driving test that took place in Goiânia and experts point out that the situation may become frequent
Four people were run over during a driving test held on March 27, in Goiânia (GO), after a candidate for the National Driver’s License (CNH) lost control of the vehicle. The student used a private car to take the test of the State Department of Traffic of Goiás (Detran-GO).
Witnesses recorded the moment on video shortly after the occurrence. According to reports, the car advanced towards people who were waiting to take the practical exam. The vehicle did not have a double command pedal — a device that allows the intervention of the instructor or examiner in emergency situations — and ended up invading the waiting area, hitting other candidates and knocking down structures in the place.
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In a statement, the DMV-GO confirmed that four people were hit. Three of them received care on site and did not need to be sent to the hospital. Sarah Araújo Borges, 19, was rescued by the Fire Department and taken to a health unit. In an interview with the Metrópoles portal, the student reported having suffered fractures in the spine and coccyx. The president of the traffic department, Waldir Soares, said that preventive actions aimed at safety will be adopted. Among the measures planned are the reassessment of safety protocols and the repositioning of areas intended for waiting for candidates.
The occurrence reignited discussions raised by traffic experts about the risk of changes in the process of obtaining the CNH provided for by Resolution No. 1,020, of December 1, 2025. This is because, in addition to putting an end to the mandatory nature of driving schools and making the qualification stages much more flexible, the new rules include allowing the use of automatic and private cars, which do not need to be adapted.
The dual camshaft is a safety system installed in driving school cars that adds brake and clutch pedals on the passenger side. It allows the instructor to intervene in real time, braking or stopping the vehicle if the student makes mistakes, thus ensuring greater safety, control and confidence. According to Roberta Torres, a specialist in traffic education with more than 24 years of studies in the area, this device was one of the main tools to prevent accidents from happening, both during classes and at the time of exams. The scholar highlights the importance of the device:
We are talking about people who are not yet qualified, so being candidates means that they may or may not have the necessary skills to drive a vehicle safely and therefore are subject to approval or disapproval. The examiner will only find out when he is inside the car. So it’s not a person to whom you can just hand over the driving without any kind of care, any kind of guarantee. So, in general, accidents can very well be avoided if the dual brake and clutch control is present in all cars.”
Torres and other experts in traffic education raised this discussion more than six months ago, when the new legislation on the licensing process was still a project, and currently point to the new rules as a setback in terms of safety. According to her, the steps to obtain the CNH could be less bureaucratic and cheaper, but without scrapping the process.
This case in Goiânia was not the first and will not be the last either. Perhaps we will see even more dangerous situations with even death resulting in examination areas and training sites, due to the permission to take classes in any vehicle without the double brake and clutch control.”
The scholar also points out that Detran solutions, such as making changes in the exam area, are only a palliative and that those involved in the driving test will still be at risk without 0 double command.
