The Road Transport Department (JPJ) has announced that a whopping 64% of commercial vehicle operators audited during the Special Operation on Safety Audit System Guidelines have failed to meet mandatory safety requirements.
As reported by Bernama, the nationwide operation – which began on June 23 – saw 85 of 133 commercial vehicle operators audited fail to comply with JPJ Inspection Special Audit (JISA) guidelines, while only 48 passed.
According to JPJ director-general Datuk Aedy Fadly Ramli, the non-compliant companies comprised 43 lorry operators and 42 tour and express bus operators. Among the major violations were the failure to appoint occupational safety and health officers, lack of GPS trackers in all vehicles, and poor GPS monitoring practices.
Many companies also failed to record drivers’ working hours, which must not exceed eight hours a day, and did not ensure a minimum 30-minute break for every four hours of driving. Some companies also had no safety action plans in place, and did not display hotline numbers or the names of responsible officers on their vehicles for public complaints.
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“The department will submit the list of non-compliant companies to the Land Public Transport Agency (APAD) for further action, including possible suspension or cancellation of operating licences,” he said, stressing that JPJ will continue to take firm enforcement action as part of their overall efforts to enhance road safety, upholding the integrity of the national transport system.
In the same vein, Aedly Fadly said that JPJ will begin enforcing seat belt usage for all express buses, tour buses, and goods vehicles starting July 1. The enforcement will be carried out in stages; buses manufactured before January 1, 2020, will be given a deadline to install seatbelts in all passenger seats, in line with existing regulations.
“Previously, we emphasised advocacy, but beginning July 1, enforcement action will be taken against passengers who fail to wear seat belts, something that has not been implemented until now,” he said. Passengers who do not buckle up will be fined up to RM300, and the driver and bus companies could also be subject to legal action for failing to ensure passenger safety.
JPJ will utilise CCTV cameras and video footage from within the bus to take action against drivers who do not ensure passengers are buckled up. “If the driver has reminded passengers, but they still refuse to wear seatbelts, only the passengers will be fined,” Aedy said.
The same seat belt regulations will also be enforced on drivers and passengers of goods vehicles with a permissible maximum weight of up to 3,500 kg.
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