Government targets unsafe trucks on national roads
Just 6 percent of 12,006 commercial freight vehicles passed recent road safety inspections, while an estimated 70 percent of car drivers bought their driving licenses illegally from private driving schools, a meeting at the Ministry of Public Works and Transportation was told yesterday. Many of the commercial transport vehicles failed safety inspections due to the use of makeshift parts to extend truck beds to enable them to carry loads beyond their actual capacity, while others used out-of-date tires or did not have properly working lights on their vehicles. … Transporting trucks will be required to install GPS satellite navigation systems, Touch Chankosal, secretary of state at the Ministry of Transportation, said at the meeting, which followed after a call by Prime Minister Hun Sen to review enforcement of regulations of transport trucks. … Mr. Maly also said that his ministry would get serious about proper licensing of drivers, and would prosecute driving schools that simply issued licenses for a fee without any driving instructions or tests. …
