Seat belts compulsory from Oct.1

The police is to strictly impose the law against every person travelling in the driving seat or the front passenger seat in motor vehicles with English number plates who fails to wear their seat belts with effect from October 1. 
 
The penalty for not wearing the seat belt would be a first conviction fine not less than Rs.1,000 and not more than Rs.2,000, a second conviction fine of not less that Rs.2,000 and not more than Rs.3,000 and the third conviction fine of not less than Rs.3,500 and cancellation of the driving license. 

The police department said that many people die due to road accidents as they have failed to wear the seat belts.

Therefore the police are to conduct more patrolling in the main roads in the cities and suburbs to monitor motorists whether they are obeying the new regulations from October 1. 

The provisions of these regulations will not apply to persons whose height does not exceed 1.5 meters or persons who are exempted from wearing a body restraining seat belt on the recommendation of a Registered Medical Practitioner. 

Also drivers of vehicles, while performing manoeuvres which include reversing, any person holding a valid Medical Certificate signed by a registered medical practitioner stating that it is medically inadvisable for such person to wear a seat belt.

This medical certificate has to be first registered at the RMV.  The traffic police are also preparing to carry out an awareness programme about the necessity to have tail lights or reflectors in bicycles also from October 1, especially for cyclists. 

The investigations into the motor accidents of the past few months reveal that most of them were caused due to cyclists riding in the night without lamps and tail lights.

The traffic police said that strict legal action would be taken against those riding bicycles without lights and tail lights in the night following the end of the awareness programme. 

(Supun Dias – daily mirror)