RTSA to issue another SI to regulate speed

Wed, 12 Apr 2017 06:33:14 +0000

By CHINTU MALAMBO and IRVIN MUYUMBWA

THE Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) will soon come up with another statutory instrument (SI) called the Global Positioning Device system to regulate the speed of all public service vehicles.

RTSA public relations manager Fredric Mubanga said that the agency was aware that it might have some economic challenges but that there was need to put in other measures like the Global Positioning Device to control overspeeding.

He said that the introduction of the Global Positioning Device would help control the speed at which vehicles and especially public service vehicles will be moving in order to promote road safety.

Mr Mubanga also said that government had made it mandatory for all imported vehicles to come into Zambia with already inserted seatbelts.

And the Public and Private Drivers Association of Zambia (PPDAZ) president Josiah Majuru said his association was conducting stakeholder consultations with public service drivers to see how best the seat belt requirement was going to work out.

Mr Majuru said that commuter buses were usually imported into Zambia without seat belts because they came in as goods carriers.

Meanwhile government says it is making progress in according Mazhandu Family Bus Services its right to be heard following an appeal to have its licence reinstated after it was suspended due to a poor road safety record.

Minister of Transport and Communications Brian Mushimba said in  an interview that a tribunal that was set up to hear an appeal by Mazhandu started its hearing in Lusaka on Friday and was expected to conclude in 30 days before decision whether to lift their suspension or not could be reached.

“They have a right to be heard and according to the Road Traffic Act, they appealed to the minister (Mushimba) who gave guidance to send that appeal to the tribunal. The last I checked, they had started adjudicating on the matter was last Friday.” Mr. Mushimba said.

The minister explained that Mazhandu licence was suspended due to their disregard of the provisions of the Road Safety Act by their numerous accidents which showed lack of a system to manage their fleet to avoid the accidents.

He reiterated that the road traffic Act gave the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) the mandate and power to suspend any licensee disregarding the provisions of the Act and breaking the law with impunity.

“Mazhandu fell into that category by their numerous accidents on the road which showed either a lack of safety programmes in their institution or a lack of system that can manage their fleet to avoid some of the accidents,” he said.