8:37 AM | Posted by samakomlao

Overloaded buses, trucks create road risks in Laos

Trucks loaded with passengers and overloaded buses are continuing to violate regulations by stuffing in too many passengers, to maximise their profits.

Whenever someone sees this, they cannot help feeling concerned as to what would happen in an accident, as overloading can result in deaths and injures.

Vientiane authorities say drivers fill up the bus with extra passengers along the way, forcing people to stand up or hang on the back of the truck. When this happens after drivers have left the stations, it is especially difficult for the authorities to stop them... more

“We have discussed this issue several times with the Vientiane Police Office to address the issue,” said the Deputy Director of Vientiane 's Communication, Transport, Post and Construction Department, Mr Khampheng Xaysouli.

“We really want to solve the issue, but the current system is not appropriate, and we need an appropriate mechanism. The problem is that we don't have highway police checking the vehicles. But we are working in cooperation with local police in some areas of various provinces.”

Mr Khampheng said that before leaving the station, buses and trucks are checked and the vehicles will be checked again when they enter the next station. In the past, police stopped many trucks and buses that violated the rules to educate and fine the drivers, but this has not stopped the practice.

“We don't have enough people to monitor and fine them,” he said.

In fact, according to the law, trucks with passengers in the back should drive below the speed of 60km per hour, and buses should only carry one passenger per seat, with a maximum of 35 to 45 seats. The backs of trucks should be limited to around 10 passengers.

Mr Khampheng said that many vehicles did not follow this rule. They drove fast and were filled up with too many people, causing accidents.

On one April morning, a public bus skidded off a hillside road, in Phoukhoun district, Luang Prabang province, killing 17 passengers and injuring 30 others, around 300km north of Vientiane.

A few weeks ago, a public bus on its way to the capital from Champassak province slammed into a truck carrying gravel in Khammuan province, killing three people and injuring ten passengers.

Mr Khampheng said police would install equipment next month to evaluate the speed of all long-haul trucks along the roads, in particular between Vientiane and the northern and southern provinces.

Mr Khampheng said his department would also strictly check buses in Vientiane that stop between proper bus stops, disturbing the traffic. “We will discus this further with relevant sectors to find appropriate solutions to the problem,” he said.

By vientiane times