The Road Transport and Safety Agency has requested Power Tools Bus Services to show cause within seven days why their road service licence should not be suspended or revoked for defying the provisions of Statutory Instrument No. 76 of 2016 which restricts the movement of Public Service Vehicles (PSV) at night, and thereby posing serious danger to the travelling public.
In a letter dated 10th January 2019 addressed to the Director of Power Tools Bus services, the RTSA have observed that the latter action by the operator is tantamount to violating the conditions upon which the operator’s licence was granted in accordance with section 108 (16) of the Road Traffic Act No. 11 of 2002.
This comes in a wake of a road traffic crash on 28th December, 2018 around 04:22 hours, involving a power Tools bus registration number ALD 1807 were one person died and five injured.
The crash occurred along the Kapiri Mposhi – Ndola road, 20 kilometers from Ndola at Rainbow area.
Accident investigations conducted by the RTSA have revealed that the cause of the accident was dangerous driving on the part of the driver Taylos Musonda who failed to notice a stationary vehicle on the road and ended up hitting into it despite a warning device (triangle) having been mounted to warn oncoming traffic of a breakdown ahead.
It was further established that the accident occurred around 04:22 hours when the bus should have been parked in accordance with Statutory Instrument No. 76 of 2016 on restriction on night driving for PSVs between 21:00 hours to 05:00 hours.
The RTSA is evoking Section 108(16) of the Road Traffic Act No. 11 of 2002 that empowers the Agency to revoke, suspend or vary the terms of a RSL if the conditions subject to which it was granted are not being complied with.
Further, the RTSA is worried with the deteriorating road safety record for Power Tools bus services which recorded two (02) road crashes in a space of three days, between 28th and 31st December, 2018 in which four (04) people died.
This is according to a statement issued to the media by RTSA Public Relations Manager Fredrick Mubanga.
They are aware already about that law so whats the point of warning them. Just suspend the licence and let them go fight with the concourt.
This SI was a daft one in the first place. I thought it was reversed.
This case will just vanish after brown envelopes are handed out.
The issue is that all police check points know about this Law, Why did the check points allow the bus to proceed knowing that it was going to reach the destination out of time, the nearest check point should have the people manning it taken to task, most of these accidents happening at night happen because of faulty vehicles which actually go though designated police check points and I have heard of transporters who actually give drivers bribery money for check points. take for instance the chichele plantation road from Baluba to Ndola, at night you find trucks without number plates and fitness, road tax or insurance going through police check points.
So what? Fredrick Mubanga. You are just part of an incompetent skulduggery PF RTSA dysfunctional entity.
PF government through RTSA loves to see lots of innocent Zambians die needlessly by TOOLS bus company at the expense of political expediency.
Editor,
I am from Kitwe at the Copperbelt province, I had travelled to Lusaka when coming back I decided to use MAZANDU FAMILY BUS SERVICES, guess what I discovered? I discovered a very careless Driver, driving at the same time playing with his phone. I can’t say every MAZANDU Driver is a careless Driver but they should mind who to drive people around because they’re carrying people not animals. Human life is very important. This guy was using his phone under the rain with a high speeding bus, which was carrying more than 40 people . That is how they cause accidents. it’s better we expose some of them so that others can be careful.
This happened today 10/01/2019.
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Share for what? Zambians dont know how to gather evidence…look how your Indian sorted that police officer who was manhandling him in his vehicle.
Call toll free 983, tell them all the particulars and they almost immediately act.
Why summon when the law is clear..do you summon every driver who is caught by your phoney speed cameras? RTSA needs a new Director…this company has killed alot of passengers due to negligence.
it is all about corrupt officers they should face 2pac music as well as the operator
In case people don’t know, the owner of power tools is a high ranking part time traffic officer. Maybe this why he’s kept on flouting the law.
moving death traps, these guys have killed a lot of people on these roads.
From Kapirimposhi you have a Toll gate at Kafulafuta after the toll gate you find Kafulafuta police check point.You mean all these two points the Bus could not be stopped by officers for driving around 04:00hrs?
Is it not another power tools bus that went into a wrong lane and crashed head on with a small car in which three ladies including a pharmacist died just on the same kapiri road? This company should just have the licence suspended and all drivers go for mandatory re-testing.
Take them to court, fine them, and revoke their license for two weeks to a month. Don’t always issue baseless threats.
Police at check points and RTSA are partakers of some accidents that happen on our roads. Why should police allow a PSV bus pass through their check point after 21 hours or before 05 hours? These people are hypocrites of sorrow.
I have been on Tanzanian buses without seat belts and reported to RTSA repeatedly over this situation. Todate, RTSA has done nothing about it. The Tanzanian buses disregard the law on night travel and do not bother to put functioning seat belts on their buses.
Shame on RTSA and the police for aiding some bus operators to disobey the law.
Don’t blame the police always you’ve powers to apprehend. Citizen arrest is always on your finger tips. I’ve done it on several occasions. I like the way they do it in Ghana, fast track courts are on course. Emulate our friends in Ghana.
Comment:besides everything, how far was that triangle reflector?
2, what are the metres required for a reflector from the breakdown.
3, RTSA is also a corrupt company which also came to make money from the poor citizens. nowander why we keep on renewing our PSV Drivers Licence every 365 days,its in their interests. they are making money from the poor.this is a South African Company in Zambia.
and we Zambia are too sleepy,tulo too much.we can’t even demonstrate about it.xaa