Almost 170,000 AWAS summonses issued since Sept 2018

Deputy Transport Minister Hasbi Habibollah said from Sept 1, 2018 to December last year, compound payments of RM6.9 million were collected.

AWAS, previously known as the Automatic Enforcement System (AES), was indeed effective, where a study conducted by the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS) found that it is able to reduce 95 per cent of accident risks at traffic intersections or roads installed with cameras, he told the Dewan Negara today.

He said this in reply to a question from Senator Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Dr Ibrahim Shah Abu Shah on the amount of summonses and compounds collected during the period.

Meanwhile, in reply to a question from Senator Datuk Kesavadas A. Achayuthan Nair on strategic measures implemented to reduce the rate of death involving motorcyclists in road crashes, Hasbi said the ministry, through its agencies, had conducted various campaigns and advocation such as the ''no week without advocation' (TMTA) programme nationwide.

He said talks and road safety campaigns were also conducted to enhance public awareness on road safety , including in schools and higher learning institutions.

"Reminders are also made through announcements by television stations, as well as talk shows, advertisements and crawlers, and also announcements on radio and the social media.

"The ministry, through MIROS, also carried out numerous promotions, courses and road safety trainings, particularly to high risked groups such as motorcyclists," he said.

According to Hasbi, last year's statistics showed that 64 per cent of the 6,167 fatal road crashes involved motorcyclists and pillion riders.