The driver of the bus ALZ 3677, owned by ABYKEN Bus Services, disregarded the provisions of Statutory Instruments (SI) Nos. 76 of 2016 and 51 of 2021, which limit the movement of Public Service Vehicles (PSVs) at night, between the hours of 22:00 and 04:00. This information was made public by the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA).
According to a statement made by the head of RTSA’s public relations, Fredrick Mubanga, initial investigations indicate that the driver struck a stationary Scania Tipper Truck after miscalculating the distance when he tried to transfer lanes, killing six persons.
He said that the bus driver has since been summoned by the agency for violating the PSV nighttime ban.
This comes after a catastrophic bus-related traffic accident in the Kapiri Mposhi District of Central Province that left six persons dead and 10 critically hurt.
Engineer Alinani Msisya, the acting director and chief executive officer of RTSA, has sent a message of sympathy to the relatives of the deceased, calling the disaster as tragic and unfortunate, according to Mr. Mubanga.
“According to the Global Position System (GPS) report, the accident happened at 03:54 hours when the driver of the bus ALZ 3677, belonging to ABYKEN Bus Services hit into a stationary Scania Tipper Truck, after misjudging the distance when he attempted to switch lanes.
From the forgoing, the RTSA will be writing to ABYKEN Bus Services to show cause why the Road Service Licence (RSL) should not be suspended or revoked for defying the provisions of Statutory Instruments (SI) No. 76 of 2016 and (SI) No. 51 of 2021 which restricts the movement of Public Service Vehicles (PSVs) at night, between 22:00 hours and 04:00 hours,” he said.
According to Mr. Mubanga, the agency believes that the operator’s behavior amounts to a violation of the terms under which the operator’s license was granted in accordance with section 108 (16) of the Road Traffic Act No. 11 of 2002, endangering the lives of other road users and causing the loss of six lives.
