http://www.observerbd.com/2014/11/29/57549.php Publish Date :
2014-11-29,
Seventy five years of expectation for a good traffic law MS Siddiqui Bangladesh is a riverine country having opportunity of low cost easy transport system but shift of policy toward road transport is not hard to understand. The road transport and traffic system over a period of time has assumed a monumental importance in economic welfare of the country. An unplanned growth of the sector, poor road condition and excessive use has already led the sector to a disaster. The commercial production of motor vehicle started in 1908 and the British rulers enacted Motor Vehicles Act within 6 years in 1914. The law became obsolete and redundant within next 25 years and the British rulers replaced with new law --- the Motor Vehicle Act, 1939. It had its name changed for three times --- East Pakistan Motor Vehicles Act 1939 (1947); The Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 (1972) and Motor Vehicles Ordinance 1983 (MVO 1983) --- but insignificant changes in structure have made it an ineffective law which can hardly be regulated in present condition. The technological developments and demands are changing very fast but the law could not be changed very often. Therefore provisions of the law have to be such that these should be able to address the present and foreseeable future road traffic regulation needs, but the MVO, 1983 is very rigid, which is about 70 years old and thus has become obsolete. The regulatory body had been given the responsibility of planning, and the executive authority of implementing it in transport sector like many other regulating agencies in Bangladesh. But they became unsuccessful like other regulators in both policy making and implementing authority. The existing law has no provision to regulate manufacturing and assembling of vehicles. It has no provision authorizing the regulatory body --Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) --- regarding issuing of driving licence, procedure for issue and renewal of licence. The procedure of registration marks, number plates are not in conformity with the law. The MVO, 1983 originally regulated motorized vehicles only, but not non-motorized and gas driven vehicles, and even pedestrians. The gas-fuel and batterypowered engines are not yet incorporated in the law, and the issue of registration and fitness certificates to CNG- and batterypowered vehicles are beyond jurisdiction of the law. The BRTA has no standard of compliance about carbon emission, legal provision for ordering phasing-out of vehicles or fixing tenure limit of vehicles etc. The regulation and certain actions of the BRTA are contrary to the legal provisions. The MVO 1983 has no relevance to the sector it is intended to regulate. The government seems to have realized it more recently. A World Bank funded 'Clean Air and Sustainable Environment (CASE) Project' was approved by the government to revise the act but the expert committee recommended and drafted a new law --'Road transport & Traffic Act, 2011 (RTTA Act, 2011) --- that still remains pending for final approval of the Ministry of Communication. The proposed RTTA Act, 2011 provides the necessary regulatory provisions to include all road users. It has provisions of some shared responsibilities with local government. The RTTA empowers the local government organizations to prepare and enforce laws on these subjects. Provisions have been made to provide legal backing for the preparation and use of the Highway Code and the Traffic Sign Manual. Besides, elaborate legal provisions have been made to control the traffic on the highway to ensure efficient and smooth flow of traffic. The proposed law has new clauses of pedestrians on the roads or highways where a footpath is ensured and its use is practicable.