The Ministry of Transportation and Communications is mulling amendments to the Road and Traffic Safety Rules (道路交通安全規則) to limit people whose driver’s license is suspended or revoked to licenses that last two to six years upon reapplication, Department of Railways and Highways Director Lin Fu-san (林福山) said yesterday.
Standard driving licenses are valid until the age of 75, with older drivers required to provide a health certificate and pass a written test on traffic and road regulations to receive a three-year license.
However, the proposed amendment would mean that people who have their license suspended for less than one year would be limited to a six-year license after their suspension ends, Lin said.
Photo: CNA
People whose license has been suspended for longer than a year would be limited to a three-year license, while those whose license has been revoked would have to pass a driving test to receive a two-year license, he added.
People who have their license revoked for serious offenses — including for causing a fatal crash — and are barred for driving for six to 12 years would be limited to a one-year license, if they meet other criteria, Lin said.
If a holder of a limited-period license reoffends, they would be limited to a license the next tier down from what they were on, as long as the severity of the offense is not too great, he said.
People with a limited license can apply for a standard license provided they have not had any points deducted for traffic violations while they were on the limited license, he added.
The draft amendments are expected to be completed by next month and they would be promulgated in March next year at the earliest, the ministry said.
Separately, the ministry said there were 201,880 traffic incidents in the first six months of this year, 10 percent more than in same period last year.
The incidents caused 1,569 deaths, a 6.4 percent rise, it said.
While pedestrian deaths and injuries decreased, the ministry would have to work harder to reach its goal of reducing traffic deaths and injuries by 5 percent this year, Minister of Transportation and Communications Wang Kwo-tsai (王國材) said.
Additional reporting by CNA
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