Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha is not willing to invoke Section 44 of the interim constitution to deal with overloaded trucks as proposed by a group of trucking operators, saying that the problem can be tackled if the existing law is strictly enforced, government spokesman Lt-Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd said over the weekend.
However, he said that the government would tighten up regulating trucks and passenger vans to ensure public safety and public interests.
As for overloaded trucks, the spokesman disclosed that provincial authorities, in cooperation with military and personnel in the provinces, to strictly inspect trucks to make sure that each 10-wheel truck must carry load not exceeding 25 tonnes and not more than 50.5 tonnes for a trailer.
He noted that, in the past, the weight regulation was not strictly enforced resulting to many overloaded trucks plying the country’s highways, causing extensive damages to roads each year.
Many trucks which carry farm products such as sugar cane and construction materials such as sand, soil and pebbles are not covered with canvas, resulting in soil or farm products spilling on roads, posing ricks to other motorists, said Lt-Gen Sansern.
Officials manning weighing checkpoints have been instructed to be more stringent in their checking of trucks to make sure that they comply with the weight limits, he said.
Regarding passenger vans, the spokesman said all the passenger vans which operate inter-provincial trips within 300 kilometres from Bangkok have been relocated from the Victory Monument to Chatuchak, Pinklao and Ekamai bus terminals with free shuttle bus service to ferry passengers from Victory Monument to each respective terminal.
He said both the passengers and van operators were cooperative with authorities. Van operators are allowed to use the space at bus terminals free of charge for six months, he added.
