Rwandan govt to conduct traffic policy investigation

Date: 3/4/2012

The Rwandan government is to conduct research into the country's traffic policy and whether present rules are appropriate.

Currently, right-hand drive vehicles are unable to get legal registration plates in the nation, the New Times reports.

Although this legislation was originally introduced in a bid to prevent road accidents, it has pushed up the cost of vehicles in Rwanda compared with other East African Community (EAC) Partner States.

Furthermore, motorists currently have to keep to the right in Rwanda and Burundi, but move to the left once they are in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.

As a result, the Minister of State in charge of Transport for Rwanda has announced a government investigation will be conducted to determine whether the nation should change its laws to correspond with other EAC members.

Rwanda previously had one of the worst road safety records in the world, but as the World Heath Organization notes, it has made significant efforts to bring about change and improve the situation.

Posted by Nick Anderson