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The Road Traffic (Construction and Maintenance of Vehicles) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulation 2014 and the Road Traffic (Amendment) Ordinance 2012 (Commencement) Notice (the Commencement Notice), which aim to further improve public light bus (PLB) safety, were published in the Gazette today (June 27), said a Transport and Housing Bureau spokesman.
The Regulation specifies that a PLB that is first registered on or after December 1 this year has to be fitted with an approved electronic data recording device (EDRD), commonly called a black box.
The spokesman said the Transport Department (TD) has approved seven EDRD models and authorised their respective installers accordingly. The list of approved EDRDs and their authorised installers is available on the TD's website (www.td.gov.hk).
The Commencement Notice requires that an applicant who applies for a PLB driving licence on or after June 1, 2015, will be required to have attended and completed a pre-service course before he or she is issued with a PLB driving licence. The eligibility for driving PLBs of incumbent drivers and existing holders of PLB driving licenses will not be affected.
The spokesman added that the pre-service course fee is capped at $1,500 by the TD, and subsidy will be provided to applicants with low income who attend the pre-service course conducted by the training bodies of the Employees Retraining Board (ERB). An applicant, subject to an income test by the ERB, may be eligible for partial (70 per cent) or full course fee waiver.
The course covers basic knowledge and legislation on PLB operation, occupational health, construction of a PLB, driving and road safety, handling of traffic accidents and emergencies, quality customer service and handling of complaints. The TD has been preparing for the selection and designation of training schools, formulating the relevant Code of Practice for the provision of a pre-service course and briefing the PLB trade and training organisations on the implementation of the new requirement.
Both the Regulation and the Commencement Notice will be tabled at the Legislative Council (LegCo) on July 2. Subject to LegCo's approval, the legal requirements for EDRDs and the pre-service course will come into effect on December 1 this year and June 1, 2015, respectively.
Ends/Friday, June 27, 2014
Issued at HKT 12:00
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