The Department of Land Transport will rigorously enforce a points-based system next month for drivers in the transportation industry to promote safer driving, it said.
While a similar system has been in place for several years, it has only been loosely applied. But from December, the department will fully implement two regulations targeting drivers of taxis, tuk-tuks and motorcycle taxis, according to its director-general Chirute Visalachitra.
The second of these will see their licences suspended or withdrawn if the offender runs out of points.
The drivers will initially be awarded 100 points with deductions of 10, 20 or 30 points for traffic violations depending on the severity of the offence.
The department encouraged both drivers and their employers to study the new rules at www.dlt.go.th/th or via the Facebook fan page PR.DLT.News.
Anyone who breaks the law and does not have any points left on their licence will have it suspended for 90 days.
Two suspensions in three years will result in them losing their licence for 180 days, the agency said.
Some offences will result in the immediate loss of all points they have left. These include the use of narcotics, using a suspended licence, harming others' safety or causing accidents that result in fatalities.
Drivers with deducted points can recover 50-100 points by joining two four-hour training sessions.
Their points will be returned on the day of the examination following the training. If they do not pass, they will be given three opportunities to take the test again within seven days.
Drivers can attend one training session per year.
Those who wish to recover their points can file a complaint with transport offices across the country using their driving licences or ID cards.
These measures will not be applied to drivers of private cars for personal use, the department said.
