THE NEW HIGHWAY CODE
EARLY this year, the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) published a new Zambian Highway Code. The new Highway Code, which is a 6th edition, has 297 traffic rules. You must familiarize yourself with the new Highway Code.
Most people in our country discover the existence and importance of the Highway Code only when they want to get a driver’s licence. Getting a licence is their only motivation for reading the Highway Code. At that point, such people will search for the Highway Code, memorize the 10 Basic Rules of Driving and a few road markings and traffic signs to simply pass the RTSA test.
After passing RTSA test, most prospective drivers ‘throw away’ the Highway Code. To them, the use of the Highway Code ends with obtaining the Provisional Driver’s Licence. They don’t realize that a Highway Code is designed to be a daily handbook for every driver. Even experienced drivers should keep a Highway Code nearby and revise it as often as possible.
We all need to remember that a Highway Code is designed for all road-users, not just drivers. A road-user is anyone who uses the road. The new Highway Code classifies road-users to include pedestrians, children, passengers, animals, motorists (drivers and motorcyclists) and non-motorists such as bicyclists, wheelbarrow pushers and ox-cart drivers. A Highway Code is a very important document for all road-users.
Let’s start our discussion by understanding what a Highway Code is. A Highway Code is a personal handbook for road-users containing a set of rules on how to use the road safely. In other words, a Highway Code is a user-guide, a manual for good road behaviour.
The Highway Code lists all the traffic rules. Many people talk about traffic rules but very few can recite 10 of those traffic rules. So, if you want to know all the traffic rules you are expected to follow as a road-user in Zambia, you need to study the Highway Code.
The Highway Code is not law. In Zambia, we have the Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act. These two documents are different from each other. The Highway Code simply looks at road safety while the Act regulates the entire transport sector, road safety included. This clearly shows that the Act is wider in scope compared to the Highway Code.
Violating the Highway Code doesn’t necessarily mean that you have violated the Act. Violation of the Highway Code is not a criminal offence. In other words, you cannot be prosecuted in the courts of law for violating the Highway Code.
However, you must remember that you can be fined for violating the Highway Code. If you are a driver, your licence can be revoked. Furthermore, the violation of the Highway Code may be used as evidence in court. Even a pedestrian who violates the Highway Code can be fined.
Some traffic rules are requirements in both the Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act. Violating such traffic rules automatically means you have violated the Act as well. The new Highway Code makes it easier to identify such requirements. You can identify them by the words ‘ MUST or MUST NOT’. Any traffic rule in the Highway Code with the words MUST or MUST NOT means that such a traffic rule is also found in the Act. Your goal should be to obey all the traffic rules in the Highway Code, not just rules which are also found in the Act. After all, the Highway Code is aligned to the Act.
I often get asked, “what are the major differences between the new and old edition of the Highway Codes? And what happens to the previous edition? Is it still relevant?” Yes, the old edition of the Highway Code is still relevant. The new and old Highway Codes have more similarities than differences which means that most of the traffic rules are still the same. But I highly recommend the new Highway Code even if you have an old Highway Code.
The New Highway Code is an improved version to address the current road safety needs. Since road safety is ever-changing, it’s important to revise our Highway Codes from time to time. The key differences between the new and old Highway Codes are as follows. Firstly, the old Highway Code had 263 traffic rules. The new Highway Code has 297 traffic rules under 6 sections. Each section addresses a specific class of road-users. This shows that we have more traffic rules in the new Highway Code than the old Highway Code.
Secondly, the new Highway Code has a section that addresses the safety of passengers. In the old Highway Code, the passengers were not classified as road-users. Hence, the Highway Code was silent on passengers and their responsibility to behave safely. I’m particularly happy that the new Highway Code prohibits the unsafe way passengers are carried during political rallies or sports events!
Thirdly, the new Highway Code makes it easy to identify the requirements that are also found in Road Traffic Act. This is important for you to know the gravity of the offence you have committed. Disobeying such requirements may lead to prosecution. The previous Highway Code didn’t have a clear distinction of such requirements.
Allow me to conclude by emphasizing that the Highway Code is designed for all road-users, not just drivers. Additionally, the Highway Code is designed to be used continuously, not just when getting a Driver’s licence. Take time to read the Highway Code with your family. We all fall in one or more classes of road-users. Therefore, we all need to know the Highway Code. You may not own a vehicle, but you can own a Highway Code. Every home must possess a Highway Code and a Fire Extinguisher. In future articles, we’ll look at the contents of the Highway Code. To get a free copy of the new Highway Code, send me your WhatsApp number or email address. I’ll send you a soft copy for free.
The author is the CEO of SafetyFocus Suppliers, a leading safety company in Zambia. For your daily safety tips, like our Facebook page on www. facbook.com/safetyfocussuppliers.
Some traffic rules are requirements in both the Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act. Violating such traffic rules automatically means you have violated the Act as well. The new Highway Code makes it easier to identify such requirements. You can identify them by the words ‘MUST or MUST NOT’.
The Highway Code is not law. In Zambia, we have the Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act. These two documents are different from each other. The Highway Code simply looks at road safety while the Act regulates the entire transport sector, road safety included. This clearly shows that the Act is wider in scope compared to the Highway Code.