09:15, 11 сентября 2017, Bishkek - 24.kg news agency , Anastasia BENGARD
«We will not allow the Ministry of Internal Affairs to prohibit private transportation by right-hand drive cars!» such a petition is published on change.org.
«Location of the steering wheel itself is not a decisive factor in situations where the car is in danger. It may sound banal, but, apart from configuration, equipment and design, the safety of the car in most cases depends on its driver. The main thing is that he had to have good driving skills, be able to correctly assess the situation on the road and observe the traffic rules,» the document says.
«It is interesting that because of its non-standard configuration, a right-hand drive car encourages the driver to exercise greater caution and attentiveness while operating it both for his own safety and for the safety of surrounding motorists and pedestrians,» the authors of the petition add.
Until now, there is no reliable evidence and statistics confirming the higher risk of right-hand drive cars. The reasons for dangerous driving are low driving culture, traffic violations.
Petition
The authors of the document believe that the ban on the use of right-hand drive vehicles for commercial purposes (for the transportation of passengers, baggage and cargo) will create an additional corruption scheme for the Patrol Police Department staff. «The authorities simply induce taxi drivers by such methods to go into shadow and get black wages. The new amendments will deprive thousands of citizens, whose cars are often bought on credit and are the only source of their income of possibility of earning,» the petition says.
As of today, only 43 people have signed it.
Recall, fines for the use of right-hand drive vehicles for commercial purposes (for the transportation of passengers, baggage and cargo), postponed until 2020, are proposed to be introduced as early as on January 1, 2018.