GEORGE TOWN, June 10 — The Transport Ministry (MOT) will implement several mandatory measures on enforcement and monitoring of heavy vehicles to enhance road safety following the fatal bus accident that claimed the lives of 15 Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris (UPSI) students yesterday.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said that, although there are challenges in ensuring compliance by companies operating heavy vehicles, including lorries and buses, his ministry will implement mandatory enforcement measures, including installing speed-limiting devices on heavy vehicles and requiring the use of seatbelts on buses.
"We see that among the causes of (accidents) that often occur on this particular road are heavy vehicles, including lorries, buses, and so on. They drive too fast, so there is now technology, namely speed limiters, devices installed in vehicles to prevent them from exceeding the speed limit.
"However, the challenge we face is that most of them are "tampered", meaning they modify them during installation for inspection at the Computerised Vehicle Inspection Centre (Puspakom) but then they remove them afterwards, we want to ensure there is no "tampering" of the speed limiters," he said.
Loke was speaking to the press after officiating CruiseWorld Malaysia 2025 today, which was also attended by Penang Port Commission chairman Datuk Yeoh Soon Hin and state Tourism and Creative Economy Committee chairman Wong Hon Wai.
He added that MOT is exploring ways to address the safety weaknesses in heavy vehicles, including removing the speed limiter, so that the authorities can take strict and legal action once it becomes mandatory.
Meanwhile, the minister said that it is currently mandatory for new buses manufactured from 2020 onwards to have seatbelts for all passengers. However, the bus involved in the incident on the East-West Highway (JRTB) yesterday was built in 2013 and did not have seatbelts.
"Although it is mandatory for new buses to have seat belts, the challenge is to ensure compliance for passengers to wear seat belts, so we have to make compliance mandatory for passengers.
"In a car, if you do not wear a seat belt, it will emit a warning sound (beep) so we can make it mandatory for bus drivers to ensure that all passengers wear their seat belts, or the bus will not move," Loke said.
In addition, the MOT will also look into the possibility of installing "on-board" video cameras on heavy vehicles to improve safety, although it is not yet mandatory.
Yesterday, the nation was shocked by an accident that claimed the lives of 15 UPSI students when a chartered bus from Jertih, Terengganu, to Tanjung Malim, Perak, overturned after being involved in an accident at KM53 of the East-West Highway near Tasik Banding, Gerik.
— Bernama
