Detran guarantees service for people with disabilities

People with disabilities can also obtain the National Driver's License (CNH). Ensuring access to this right is among the priorities of the State Department of Transit (Detran). During the period that celebrates the National Week of People with Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities, held annually from August 21 to 28, the Department reinforces its commitment to providing this service.

The specific practical exam service for people with disabilities undergoing the licensing process occurs on Wednesdays and Fridays throughout the year. For people with disabilities, accessing this service is also a form of inclusion and an opportunity to work and, most importantly, to facilitate mobility.

The path to obtaining the National Driver's License (CNH) for people with disabilities follows traditional patterns but includes additional steps that ensure safety and suitability to individual needs. The future driver undergoes a thorough evaluation by a medical board, which issues a report certifying their condition and ability to drive. The driving test, whether during practical lessons at Driver Training Centers (CFCs) or on the day of the test at Detran, requires adapted vehicles. This adaptation can vary from manual controls for acceleration and braking to adaptations for wheelchair users, ensuring that the driver can operate the vehicle with complete safety and comfort.

In 2024, more than 3,000 people with disabilities accessed Detran's exams. Only at the agency's headquarters, an average of 150 to 200 candidates with disabilities are served monthly for practical exams.

Public servant Sebastião Vandilima, 66, shared that he came to update his CNH to improve his daily mobility, emphasizing that it is essential for his day-to-day life. “I am a person with a disability. The experience of taking the driving test was great, very good. Besides all that, the difference is that the license I had did not allow me to buy a new car with a discount. Due to my specific type of disability, I was not entitled to some things, but now, with this updated license, I can buy a car with a 30% discount. That’s the difference. And the license is also important for traffic. It’s not just because with it you are not afraid of inspections, but because you are able to travel, take care of your affairs, and work. Since my car is manual, I needed to take the test in an adapted car. Now that I have been approved, I can buy the ideal car for me, and still with a discount,” he commented.

Disabilities encompass a broad spectrum of conditions that can affect motor and cognitive functions. Among the most common in the context of traffic are visual and auditory limitations, conditions affecting the spine, multiple sclerosis, the need for wheelchairs, and the absence of limbs. To allow these individuals to enjoy the freedom and practicality that a personal vehicle offers, Detran has developed a specific licensing service process for this audience.

In addition to routine service, Detran has also ensured the inclusion of people with disabilities in the CNH Pai D'égua program, launched in 2020 by the Government of Pará. This is the largest free CNH issuance program in the country for low-income individuals. Coordinated by Detran, the program aims to boost labor market inclusion and improve family income. Among the beneficiaries, 10% are people with disabilities.

"This is an important focus for us, to achieve full inclusion of people in accessing our services, and with the CNH Pai D'égua it could not be different; we ensure full access for people with disabilities to the program, generating not only income but mobility," explains Detran's general director, Renata Coelho.

Natalie Fiama, who has lupus and is a beneficiary of the program, shares her perspective. "My goal with the license is to have a little more freedom in my mobility to places, since often public transport is not adequate and also to avoid the sun, which is important for my condition, contributing to my health as well. The opportunity for people with disabilities to obtain the CNH for free is a way to tell everyone that just because we have a disability doesn’t mean we can’t have a license."

Initiatives like the CNH Pai D'égua program from Detran prove that mobility is indeed a universal right, opening pathways to autonomy and the job market for everyone.

Text: Maria Helena Gennigs – Ascom/Detran