Transport owners have urged the government to take steps for revision of certain provisions of the new road transport law, arguing that it will lead to a shortage of drivers.
The Bangladesh Transport Owners Association also offered 'full support' to the legislation, but urged the government to reconsider some of the provisions, reports bdnews24.com.
The government passed The Road Transport Act, 2018 following unprecedented student protests for justice for two college students’ death in an accident last year. The law came into effect from November 1 this year.
Khandaker Enayetullah, secretary general of the association, said the non-bailable offences under the law will lead to a shortage of drivers.
The legislation imposes a maximum five-year jail term or Tk 500,000 fines or both on drivers involved in road traffic accidents while denying bail for bus accidents.
Punishment for violation of other traffic rules like driving a vehicle without fitness, not taking stipulated safety measures while driving, and jaywalking, has also been increased.
“At present, the transport sector is facing a shortage of drivers. If a driver cannot secure bail and is jailed soon after an accident, the crisis will deepen. What will happen then?, " said Enayetullah at a media briefing in Dhaka on Saturday.
According to a report by the World Health Organisation on road crashes, there are 2 million licenced drivers against the 3.8 million registered vehicles in Bangladesh. That means about 1.8 million vehicles are driven by untrained drivers.