A new traffic law whose draft was discussed by the Advisory Council yesterday suggests that a new private car coming on the road for the first time should be allowed to have road permit issued for three years instead of one.

Currently, new cars are issued road permits for a year but they don’t need technical inspection for three years.The draft law suggests that cars of diplomats, ministries and other government departments and of regional and international organisations as well as sports and other clubs should be given the option to have road permits issued that have two-year validity.The draft also recommends that buggies driven by children in the streets and by them as well as adults in the desert must be registered with the traffic department.

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In fact, all two and three-wheelers with a capacity of 50cc and more should be registered with the traffic authorities, according to the draft.In the case of a showroom-fresh private car, the car owner should be given a sticker by the traffic department with the date of expiry of the road permit written on it if the permit is for three years. The sticker could be prominently displayed on the new car for the authorities to see, suggests the draft law.  Cars older than three years would be issued road permits of one-year validity, as is the rule now.

The draft makes amendments to five articles of the existing Traffic Law (Number 19) of 2007. On some amended articles Advisory Council members held heated discussions. The draft also suggests that rent-a-car firms, those giving motorcycles on hire and used car showroom should not park their cars in open grounds and on pavements as that blocks traffic. Members of the Advisory Council held heated debate on the above amendment and said the companies should first be provided space by the government to park their vehicles and then they fined for such violations. Interestingly, the draft law does not touch those articles in the existing legislation that stipulate stiff cash fines for certain violations like jumping the red light.

The Advisory Council was handed the draft after the Cabinet had approved it in July last year. The Council had given it to its “Internal and External Committee” for study. The committee filed its report but the Council, after yesterday’s debate, gave it back to it for further study. The panel is called “Internal and External” because it may seek help from outside experts as well on technical issues. The panel also has Qatari observers on it who are not Advisory Council members.The Peninsula

 
Panel criticises speed reduction

 

DOHA: The Advisory Council has lambasted the decision of the traffic authorities to reduce the maximum speed on February 22 Road to 80km per hour from 100km and said it will petition the government to ask the traffic authorities to revert the decision. February 22 is an expressway so driving slowly would cause traffic snarls and that could lead to accidents, the Council said yesterday.

 

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