RTSA suspends licence for Scorpion Bus Services

THE Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) has suspended the road service licence for Scorpion Bus Services for violating the terms and conditions upon which it was granted.

In a statement made available to the Daily Nation, RTSA head of public relations, Frederick Mubanga, said the recent road traffic accidents involving the bus company had been frequent and posed a serious danger to the public. Mr Mubanga said RTSA had noted with concern that the operator had either failed or neglected to address the problem of excessive speed. He said the nation had continued to lose lives as a result of preventable road accidents. “This comes in a wake of a road traffic crash on 17th April, 2019 around 19:20 hours, involving a Scorpion bus registration number BA 8977 ZM where 14 people died and 16 injured. The crash occurred along the Chingola -Solwezi road,” he said. “Investigations conducted by RTSA revealed that the driver of the bus, Mr Eddie Katoyo, was speeding as evidenced by the fact that he overtook several vehicles and subsequently hit into a stationary truck in the opposite lane,” he said. “RTSA records indicate that on 11th April, 2019, the same bus driver was reported to have been driving at excessive speed around Chisamba area on Great North Road,” Mr. Mubanga said. He said Mr Katoyo was summoned through his employers, but the operator failed to avail him to answer to the charge. Mr Mubanga said investigations into the accident also revealed that Mr. Katoyo, was not licensed to drive Public Service Vehicles (PSV).