Rear seatbelts compulsory by 2009

KUALA LUMPUR: The sixty day countdown to the compulsory wearing of rear seatbelts begins tomorrow.

Beginning Saturday, the authorities will be conducting daily enforcement operations to ensure motorists start wearing the seatbelts even before it becomes compulsory from Jan 1.

Road Safety Department director-general Datuk Suret Singh said if motorists did not want to have their journeys interrupted, then they should wear the seatbelts.

“If not, the police will stop you, question you and give you a pep talk,” he told reporters Friday after carrying out a road safety advocacy campaign at the Sungai Besi highway here.

Suret Singh said research among some 2,000 respondents had shown that 70%-75% were aware of the importance of wearing rear seatbelts.

“However, 60% said they would only start using it when it was compulsory while 80% are not even aware that it would be compulsory effective Jan 1.”

Suret Singh also cautioned those with children saying that those under five years were not allowed to wear adult seatbelts and needed to be put on child safety seats.

“As for those between the ages of five and 10, they can use the adult seatbelt but will need a booster for height,” he said.

Suret Singh added that Proton and Perodua would be announcing in early December the schedule for the free retrofitting of cars without rear seatbelts.

He said motorists owning such cars should not feel the need to rush as the department had given the manufacturers a period of three years to ensure all these cars were retrofitted.(NST)