People's opinions on separating the field of ensuring traffic order and safety from the Road Traffic Law

Many new points

With 8 chapters and 93 articles, the Draft Law on Ensuring Order,traffic safety(TTATGT) road traffic has many new regulations. Immediately after being announced, the Draft Law attracted special attention from the public. Because this is the first time there is a draft law that separates the field of ensuring TTATGT from the infrastructure issue. Previously, this field was regulated in general in the Law on Road Traffic.

The Draft Law has inherited and amended a number of concepts and definitions inRoad Traffic Law2008 and related decrees and circulars, and at the same time supplemented a number of new concepts and definitions such as road traffic order and safety, ensuring road traffic order and safety, State management of road traffic order and safety, traffic congestion, road traffic accidents, etc.

Vehicles that stop or park illegally are locked and fined by authorities. Photo courtesy of Tr. Duong

Compared to the current law, the draft Law on Road Traffic Safety has many new points. Specifically, from Article 13 to Article 45, some traffic rules are amended and supplemented more fully and clearly, such as: Rules on the direction of travel, road section, giving way, avoiding, overtaking, changing direction, reversing, overtaking, stopping,parking, speed, distance...; supplement regulations on maximum speed of some types of heavy-duty vehicles on highways; safe distance between vehicles corresponding to speed and road conditions, weather, terrain to ensure traffic safety...

In particular, the draft law specifically regulates the means of traffic, including 10 articles, with basic contents such as: Conditions for motor vehicles to participate in traffic; conditions for rudimentary vehicles to participate in traffic; responsibilities of competent authorities in granting and revoking registration certificates and license plates; responsibilities of motor vehicle owners; granting and revoking registration and license plates of motor vehicles; ensuring technical safety and environmental protection of motor vehicles participating in road traffic...

Opening car doors is also mentioned in the Draft Law on Ensuring Road Traffic Order and Safety. Photo: Hai Dang

Notably, there are some changes in the management focal point for driver testing management, regulations on the agency ultimately responsible for the behavior of traffic participants, attaching the responsibility of the Ministry of Public Security in the acceptance and assessment of traffic safety for road traffic works before putting them into operation; responsibility in adjusting and changing the road signaling system and in traffic organization.

High consensus

In terms of practical basis, the Ministry of Public Security believes that: After more than 10 years of implementing the 2008 Road Traffic Law, many results have been achieved in the development of transport and ensuring traffic safety, contributing to socio-economic development and national security, social order and safety. However, from the practical implementation of the Law as well as the requirements set forth in the new situation, the Law has revealed shortcomings and limitations.

The most obvious of these is the 2008 Road Traffic Law, which simultaneously regulates two different areas: Road traffic order and safety and construction and development of road traffic infrastructure and road transport. These are two very large and different areas, but they are regulated in the same law, leading to the inability to fully, specifically and clearly regulate many important contents in both areas, which does not meet practical requirements.

Explaining the urgency of the Draft Law on Traffic Safety, in the Draft Proposal for this Law, the Ministry of Public Security assessed: Traffic accidents in Vietnam from 2009 to present, although decreasing, are still at a high level compared to the world, and up to 90% of the causes are due to violations by traffic participants. In addition, the issue of traffic behavior management, vehicle management, driving licenses, etc. still has many shortcomings and obstacles, affecting the effectiveness and efficiency of State management in ensuring traffic safety. For these reasons, the Ministry of Public Security believes that the birth of the Law on Traffic Safety is necessary to perfect legal regulations and solve the urgent problems mentioned above.

Traffic cameras that issue fines help traffic police monitor vehicles on the road. Photo: D.C.

According to the record, besides the opinions on how to make people understand the two laws (the Law on Road Traffic (amended) and the Law on Ensuring Road Traffic Order and Safety) to avoid confusion, thereby ensuring consistency, not overlapping, not leading to the situation of "your rights, my rights". Many opinions agree with the necessity of promulgating the Law on Ensuring Road Traffic Order and Safety to better ensure security and order on the roads, and more safety for people participating in traffic.

Ms. Tran Thi Hien in Le Loi ward (Vinh city) said that when this law comes into effect, it will certainly have a positive impact on traffic participants and traffic management agencies. Because the law has many chapters and articles that are more specific, clearly defining the responsibilities of traffic participants, as well as the responsibilities of those who enforce traffic safety, especially the responsibilities of state management agencies.transport.

As for Mr. Nguyen Quang Dung, a retired official residing in Nghi Loc district, he expressed: I am most interested in the regulation that will transfer the task of testing and issuing driving licenses from the Ministry of Transport to the Ministry of Public Security. Because in reality, a driving license is not simply like other types of licenses, but it is almost to confirm that you have enough knowledge and skills to participate in traffic safely, and if it is safe, there must be an agency responsible for safety. Meanwhile, the 2008 Traffic Law does not specify which agency is responsible for safety.

Therefore, the Draft Law on Traffic Safety assigns the task of testing and issuing driving licenses to the Ministry of Public Security, which is reasonable, not only to issue driving licenses but also to manage the entire process. If this can be done, it will help manage drivers from the time they are issued a driving license until they use it.

Traffic police of Vinh City Police regulate traffic during rush hour. Photo: Le Thang

Sharing the same opinion, Mr. Ngo Quoc Cuong, residing in Quy Hop district, said: According to the draft Law on Ensuring Road Traffic Order and Safety, a person who is granted a driving license will have 12 points in 12 months. Each time a violation occurs, the driver will have points deducted. IfDriving licenseIf all points are deducted, after 6 months from the date of deduction of all points, if the driver needs to get a new driving license, he must retake the test. If the driving license still has points, 12 points will be restored for the next 12 months.

This form will help raise awareness of traffic participants, because if they do not do well, they will be deducted points, and even have to retake the test. Accordingly, drivers will be more aware, more considerate when participating in traffic and will limit traffic accidents.

The development and early promulgation of the Law on Road Traffic Safety is extremely necessary to solve urgent practical problems arising in the current period and the following years, and to overcome the shortcomings and problems of the 2008 Road Traffic Law.

At the same time, the development of an independent draft law on road traffic safety is consistent with the current trend of building and perfecting the legal system towards specialization in Vietnam and the world. Accordingly, it ensures a clear and complete division of functions and tasks and enhances the responsibility in state management of ministries, branches and localities, while improving the effectiveness and efficiency of law enforcement, creating convenience for people, agencies and organizations.

Dr. Lawyer Nguyen Trong Hai - Head of Trong Hai and Associates Law Office

Thus, it can be seen that the separation of the law will help to more clearly define the responsibilities of the units performing the tasks. Hopefully, along with the process of collecting opinions, editing, and supplementing to complete the amendment, when this bill is passed and promulgated by the National Assembly, it will be strong enough to control the situation, impact the state management work better, ensure the legal corridor for the functional forces to perform their tasks more effectively and efficiently. At the same time, it will contribute to raising the awareness of vehicle drivers participating in traffic, forming a civilized traffic culture, approaching many advanced countries in the world.

The 10th session of the 14th National Assembly will give its first opinion on the above draft Law. The first session of the new 2021 National Assembly will vote on it. It is expected that the draft Law will take effect in January 2022.