Kathmandu, August 13
The Department of Transport Management (DoTM) has decided to strictly implement the rule that makes it mandatory for two drivers to take turns on long routes.
The Department on Tuesday issued a notice stating it would punish anyone who violated this rule. Long route vehicles travelling a distance of 250 kilometres will have to have two drivers to handle the steering turn-by-turn every six hours. Besides that, the provision also requires a driver driving on a medium route to take a break every four hours.
According to the DoTM, the provision has been brought to make road travel safer. Although this provision was incorporated in the Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act -2049 BS (1993), it had not been implemented. The notice comes days after a bus carrying four dozen people plunged into the Trishuli in Dhading. It was found that a solo driver had been behind the wheels of the ill-fated bus for more than 12 hours.
The DoTM has warned that if any driver violates the rule, the vehicle’s owner will also be punished.
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