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Raise the fines and reduce accident rates? No, it won’t happen.

All that happens is more money paid in fines…or higher ‘donations’.

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IS THE MAIN REASON FOR INCREASING FINES THE COLLECTION OF HIGHER REVENUE FOR A GOVERNMENT RUNNING OUT OF MONEY?

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12 February 2016

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malaysiakini.com ‏@malaysiakini

Hefty fines don’t make roads safer, says minister

Zikri Kamarulzaman

Raising fines for traffic offenders may not necessarily make roads safer, said Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai.

“The compound is definitely one of the way, but it doesn’t mean higher compound will reduce the number of accidents.

“We have tried it before,” Liow said at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

He was responding to inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar’s proposal to raise the quantum of traffic summonses to make roads safer.

Liow then reiterated his remarks earlier today that there should be a multi pronged approach to dealing with bad drivers.

This includes a demerit system which results in offenders having their licenses taken away.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/330181

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malaysiakini.com ‏@malaysiakini

Kejara, AES more effective than high fines, says Liow

Enforcement of the Kejara demerit point system and the Automatic Enforcement System (AES) is more effective to educate road users than imposing high fine, said Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.

This, he said, being that the amount of fine was subjective as it depended on the income and financial status of the motorists concerned.

“Kejara and AES are more effective because the amount of fine depends on individuals. A RM150 fine is high to me, but to others, it is still low.

“Enforcement of Kejara and AES involves suspending the licence of errant motorists, regardless (of) who they are if they continue to violate regulations.

“If their points reach to a level where their licence has to be suspended, then it is a more effective method,” he told reporters at a Chinese New Year celebration in Merlimau.

He was commenting on a statement by inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar, who suggested imposing higher fines to ensure compliance by motorists to road regulations.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/330182

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11 February 2016

Malaysiakini

IGP proposes increasing fines for traffic offences

Inspector-general of police (IGP) Khalid Abu Bakar is disappointed that the road accident statistics are still high and is of the view that the maximum fine for traffic offences be raised as part of initiatives to reduce the accident rate.

According to Khalid, it is to teach motorists to be more careful when driving because the human factor was still seen as the main contributor to accidents.

“By raising the maximun fine, it is hoped motorists will be more responsible,” he told reporters after attending a handover ceremony for four Perodua Axia cars for community policing sponsored by Perodua to the Royal Malaysia Police at the compound of Menara 1, Bukit Aman in Kuala Lumpur today.
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Khalid said the current maximum fine of RM300 did not appear to be a sufficient deterrent as the Op Selamat 8/2016 road safety operation launched for the Chinese New Year festive period did not see any material change in the fatality rate, with people driving on the emergency lane being the main contributors.

https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/329966

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The Washington Post

Majority of D.C. drivers don’t think higher traffic fines will make roads safer

By Luz Lazo February 8

Well, this probably won’t come as as any big surprise, but a survey of D.C. residents finds a majority oppose the city’s plans to impose hefty fine increases for speeding and other moving violations. They also don’t think they’ll make the city’s roads any safer.

We have heard the varying opinions on the District’s proposal: City transportation officials say their intent is to deter dangerous driving. Meanwhile, many in the driving public say the proposed fines are “arbitrary” and a “cash grab in the name of public safety.”

Six of 10 residents surveyed, who are also drivers in the District, say they oppose the proposal and two-thirds say they don’t think the fines will improve public safety.

The plan would create eight new penalties and increase fines on a dozen traffic offenses — in some instances doubling and tripling the current penalties. The most controversial of them is a proposal to issue $1,000 tickets to drivers going 25 mph over the posted limit.  The proposal has drawn criticism from drivers and their advocates since it was introduced in December. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) even scolded her transportation team for the proposal and said some of the fines go too far.

The changes to the city’s fine structure have been proposed as part of Bowser’s Vision Zero plan to slash traffic deaths in 10 years.

Public opinions go deeper. About half of D.C. drivers say they think the District’s main reason for increasing the penalties is to raise revenue while only 21 percent said the primary reason is out of concern for safety. About 24 percent of drivers said both safety and revenue were the reasons.

The survey of 1,085 D.C. drivers was conducted during the last week of January by Public Policy Polling for AAA Mid-Atlantic, which has been a leading critic of the proposal.  The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2016/02/08/majority-of-d-c-drivers-dont-think-higher-traffic-fines-will-make-roads-safer/

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