Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) today said that tougher penalties proposed by his ministry for drug-impaired driving could take effect as soon as the end of this year.
The proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例) would increase the penalty of a one to two-year driver's license suspension for drug-impaired driving to license revocation, along with a three-year ban on reapplying for a license.
Under the proposal, people who use Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics would have their driver's licenses revoked even if they are not caught driving or do not own a vehicle, to prevent them from driving.
Photo: CNA
Users of Category 3 or Category 4 narcotics would face license suspension.
Fines for first-time offenders would increase from NT$30,000 to NT$120,000 for motorists and from NT$15,000 to NT$90,000 for motorcyclists, Chen said.
Repeat offenses within a 10-year period would face progressively higher administrative fines, with no upper limit on the increases, he said.
Passengers aged 18 or older who knowingly ride with drivers under the influence of narcotics could face fines of up to NT$15,000, he said.
The ministry plans to submit the proposed amendments to the Executive Yuan by the end of June, after which they would be reviewed and forwarded to the Legislative Yuan for consideration, Chen told reporters.
Chen added that he believes lawmakers are also concerned about the issue of people driving under the influence of drugs.
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