The Highway Bureau yesterday issued new guidelines governing the installation of car window tinting, recommending that the visible light transmission (VLT) of front windshields be at least 70 percent.
The guidelines are to take effect next year and would initially apply to newly registered vehicles, Highway Bureau Director-General Chen Wen-juei (陳文瑞) said.
New vehicles must also have their tinted car windows certified by accredited testing organizations, he added.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
“We might ask other vehicles to follow the same guidelines,” he said. “We would recommend that drivers install certified car window tints when they need to change them.”
Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) in February listed effective management of installation of car window tinting as one of three key measures to enhance road safety.
The VLT of windows and windshields affects the driver’s vision, recognition and performance, the bureau said.
Based on the guidelines, the VLT of the tint on vehicles’ windshields should be at least 70 percent, while that of front side windows should be at least 40 percent.
The guidelines do not specify recommended VLT percentages for rear side windows and rear windows for privacy protection reasons.
Stricter rules would apply to taxis to prevent crimes, the bureau said.
Aside from having the same VLT percentages as regular vehicles in front side windows and front windshields, taxis should apply window films with at least 40 percent of VLT in both rear side windows and rear windshields, it said.
The Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例) prohibits taxis from applying opaque or reflective films.
Articles 16 and 17 of the act stipulate that taxis that have opaque reflective films on windows and windshields would be fined NT$900 to NT$1,800, Chen Wen-juei said.
The bureau would soon launch an awareness campaign to educate the public about the new guidelines, he said, adding that it would announce the exact date of enforcement later.
Window tint manufacturers have been asked to follow criteria stipulated by Chinese National Standards 12381 and ISO 9050, and must have the VLT of their tint certified, the bureau said.
The bureau and the Vehicle Safety Certification Center jointly reviewed window tinting that meet the recommended VLT percentages, it said, adding that 12 of them are posted on the Web sites of motor vehicle offices.
The number is expected to increase, the bureau said.
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