Traffic light near the Olympic Stadium seen in Phnom Penh in July. Hong Menea
Department of Land Transport director-general Chhuon Vorn said that law-breaking drivers who accumulate demerit points can attend driver education to get their scores back. The pilot programme of the demerit points system is underway, ahead of its formal implementation early next year.
He made the remarks after the ministry had implemented the pilot programme on September 1. He explained that each driver’s licence began with 12 points, and that they could be deducted according various traffic violations.
“If an accident occurs, traffic officers will inspect the scene. For example, if a driver fails to wear a seatbelt, breaks the speed limit and drives while under the influence, then their deductions will be combined, up to a maximum of eight points,” he said.
Law-breaking drivers can recover their lost points if they complete a two-day theory course at the ministry.
He explained that drivers could undergo the training once every six months, and that each training would recover four points. If a driver has all twelve points removed, then he is banned from driving and must wait six months before taking a driver’s license. The new rules are designed to ensure drivers comply with traffic regulations are to make sure that dangerous drivers do not pose a threat to the safety of other road users.
Min Manavy, ministry secretary of state and secretary-general of the National Road Safety Committee, said on September 6 that police officers had begun to implement the pilot scheme, but had encountered some problems.
“We have implemented it in some places, but are yet to receive reports from all locations, as there some technical issues with the equipment provided. We are working on these difficulties, and will release a summary of our reporting when the data is available,” she added.
She hoped the programme would contribute to reducing road accidents and encourage more people to respect the law and remain vigilant.
“Drivers will be more careful and road accidents will decline accordingly,” she added.
The ministry implemented the pilot scheme on September 1, with the full programme set to go live on January 1 next year. The demerit point reductions will be made through a smartphone app, which will allow officers to automatically deduct scores and update the driver’s licence department and the drivers themselves.
The ministries of transport and interior issued a joint prakas saying that every clean licence will have 12 points and that offences will incur penalties from one to six points.
The prakas said that one point will be deducted from drivers who fail to wear a seatbelt or helmet, use high beam headlights on oncoming traffic, cross the centre line in a non-passing section of road or exceed the speed limit by up to 19kph. The drivers of overloaded vehicles and those without lights at night time will also be penalised one point.
It added that exceeding the speed limit by 50kph or more, driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.40mg per litre of breath or from 0.80mg per litre of blood or under the influence of drugs would incur a penalty of six points. Fleeing an accident, using fake license plates or vehicle ID cards or injuring another road user would also result in the loss of six points.
Those who repeatedly use expired or invalid drivers’ licences and those who refuse to take a drug or alcohol test would likewise be docked six points.
When a driver has lost all 12 of their points, they shall be required to re-sit their driving test, no earlier than six months after the loss. Drivers who cause accidents which result in serious injuries or deaths will be banned from driving for five years.
