NEW REGULATIONS FOR DRIVERS

Southland Times, Issue 24113, 30 April 1940, Page 6

NEW REGULATIONS FOR DRIVERS

PROVISIONS AFFECTING MOTORISTS’ LICENCES

(United Press Association)

WELLINGTON, April 29. Regulations affecting motorists’ driving licences are published in a supplementary Gazette today. They contain several important provisions and embody in regulation form various enactments during the past session of Parliament. One of the new regulations states that overseas tourists may have their overseas licences endorsed without fee by local authorities at main ports, such licences to be effective for the remainder of the licensing year. Overseas drivers, however, will have to undergo an examination in the Dominion’s traffic regulations. Persons over 70 years of age in future will be required to undergo an annual driving test and will also find it necessary to have medical certificates of fitness to drive motor-vehicles.

Perhaps the most important of the new provisions is that affecting the ac-cident-prone driver. Under the regulations, the Commissioner of Transport will be empowered to review the licences of persons who may be deemed to be dangerous drivers and cancel those licences if he sees fit. An appeal from the Commissioner’s ruling to a Stipendiary Magistrate is also provided for, the cost of security for such an appeal being 20/-. In future persons under 24 years of age will not be permitted to drive taxis unless they are already engaged in this occupation or are over 21 and are approved by the Minister of Transport (the Hon. R. Semple) on the recommendation of th,e local body concerned. Another portion of the regulations stipulates that persons u.ader 18 will not be permitted to drive trucks over two tons laden weight unless they are already doing so. This applies at present to unladen trucks of that weight. All drivers of public passenger vehicles in future will require annual medical certificates, including drivers of passenger trucks. The latter have not previously been covered in this respect. Except in the case of public passenger vehicles, deafness or imperfect hearing will not debar people from obtaining driving licences, provided the medical man is prepared to give a certificate of general fitness for such a driver.