WILL KEEPING BIKES IN LEFT LANE WORK?
This is to see if it can reduce road fatalities, says Road Safety Dept D-G
THE Road Safety Department is studying a proposal to limit motorcyclists, especially those riding the smaller machines, to the left lane, to reduce the number of road fatalities.
Its director-general, Datuk Rosli Isa, said the department was looking into the effectiveness of the move and making comparisons between developed countries, such as Hong Kong and Australia, which practised the use of the left lane for motorcycles to reduce fatal accidents among motorcyclists and pillion riders of small-engined bikes.
Based on last year’s statistics, more than 60 per cent of the 6,742 accident death cases involved motorcyclists and pillion riders, he said.
“We are also studying the move to limit the speed of motorcycles with 150cc engine and below to a maximum of 70kph because, based on past studies, speeding was the primary factor in fatal accidents among motorcyclists.”
Rosli said his department had held initial discussions on the matter with several non-governmental organisations and motoring associations.
Last Wednesday, a group on WhatsApp, known as Safety First, had voiced a similar proposal during a meeting with Transport Minister Anthony Loke, to reduce the fatality rate involving low-powered motorcycles and pillion riders.
The group, which has about 500 members, believes that the law should be promptly enacted to ban small motorcycles from using the middle or right lane, which should be only for cars and other large vehicles.
Echoing Rosli’s view, Road Safety Research Institute chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye said most small-powered motorcyclists in big cities were often seen weaving in and out of traffic, especially during peak hours.
“This normally happens on roads that have no special lanes for motorcycles.
“This causes problems for large vehicles, which use the right and middle lanes.
“It’s high time small motorcycles were allowed to use the left lane for the safety of motorcyclists and pillion riders.”
Lee said if the issue was not dealt with, the fatality rate among motorists would continue to increase.