Road safety unit in every govt agency proposal

KUALA LUMPUR: A proposal has been made for every government agency to set up a road safety unit this year to help raise awareness of road safety.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the unit would provide information on road safety to government servants and conduct road safety campaigns at the agency.

The proposal on the setting up of the unit had been conveyed to the Public Service Department, he said.

“We took a leaf from the construction sites where the occupational safety and health unit had a great impact on the safety of workers.

“We (the government) do not want to just impose fines for traffic offences to raise awareness, so much so that we are accused of collecting money from the people. What we want is for every individual to realise the importance of safeguarding life,” he said in conjunction with the launch of the Road Safety Campaign yesterday in conjunction with Chinese New Year at the Sungai Besi (southbound) Rest and Service Area.

The campaign was jointly organised by the Malaysia Motorcycle and Scooter Dealers Association (MMSDA) in collaboration with Kawasaki Motors (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd.

Liow said that this year, the ministry would give priority to road safety campaigns among motorcyclists and pillion riders to reduce the number of deaths of these road users in road accidents.

According to 2016 statistics, motorcyclists and pillion riders accounted for 62 percent or 4,485 of the 7,152 road accident deaths.

On a proposal that motorcyclists get a Class B2 motorcycle licence before acquiring a Class B licence for highpowered motorcycles of 500 cc and above, Liow said the suggestion would be looked into.

Currently, a person aged 16 or above can acquire a Class B licence without even having a Class B2 licence.

On another matter, Liow said the ‘Op Selamat’ and ‘Op Bersepadu’ campaigns in conjunction with Chinese New Year would begin on Feb 9 and end on Feb 23. - Bernama