We all know what the basic traffic rules are, and yet, some of us still continue to break the law. Why? Because a majority of the time we know that we won’t get caught. Not anymore though!
Under a new demerit point system, Kejara (short for Keselamatan Jalanraya in Malay which translates to road safety), motorists will be severely punished for a variety of offences.
To be enforced in January 2014, the list includes using or attempting to use any telecommunication device while driving or riding a motorcycle, which merits 8 demerit points. Eight is the maximum amount of point assigned to an offence under the system. Driving on the emergency lane has also been listed as a serious offence that merits 8 demerit points. Other offences that also merited eight demerit points are driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, driving in a dangerous manner, reckless driving, failing to obey the traffic lights, speeding, failure to stop at junctions and overtaking at double lines.
An accumulation of 15 demerit points a year will put the motorists at risk of having their driving licenses suspended or revoked.
But there is a bright side, the demerit points will not be assigned to traffic offenders if their settle their summonses within three months from the issue date of the summonses. This is to encourage offenders to settle their summonses immediately. The previous system was a little less forgiving as those who settled their summonses would still earn demerit points.
There are 21 offences listed under Kejara, four of them are new, including the two mentioned above; using a telecommunication device while driving and driving on the emergency lane. The other two are for those who don’t use the front or rear passenger seat belts and motorcyclists who fail to use a helmet properly. Both offences carry five demerit points each.
What do you think of the demerit point system? Will motorists still continue to break the law?
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