Appeals have been circulating on social media calling for owners of right-hand-drive vehicles to be allowed to work in taxi services. The situation was addressed by the Main Traffic Safety Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic.
The department reminded that Paragraph 6, Part 6, Article 6 of the Law «On Automobile Transport» explicitly prohibits the use of vehicles with right-hand steering for commercial transportation of passengers, baggage, and cargo.
This provision has been in force since January 1, 2020, following the adoption of relevant legislative amendments. The department noted that the ban existed even before the introduction of licensing for taxi services.
As the Interior Ministry emphasized, the decision was made to improve road safety. According to statistics, over the past ten years, 21,159 traffic accidents involved right-hand-drive vehicles, resulting in 34,656 injuries and 2,366 fatalities. About 60 percent of these accidents were caused by drivers of such vehicles.
The Main Traffic Safety Department urges citizens to comply with the law and reminds that licenses for taxi operations will not be issued to right-hand-drive vehicles.
