Stickers to help taxi passengers wearing seat belts

To remind passengers of their responsibility of wearing taxi rear seat belts and to give them a clear instruction on how to wear them, the Transport Department has recently produced two stickers respectively for putting up inside taxis.

The yellow sticker (10-inch by 3.5-inch) reminds passengers of their legal responsibility of wearing seat belts and the consequence of not wearing them.

The white sticker (6-inch by 4-inch), with simple words and clear outline, tells passengers how to wear a seat belt.

"Pull out the safety belt from position 1 and buckle up at position 2."

"We mean to give a simple and straightforward message to passengers who may not be always familiar with the use of seat belts," said a spokesman for the department.

"About 40,000 copies for each sticker have been sent to the taxi trade for putting up inside taxis," added the spokesman.

The spokesman said that taxi passengers must wear seat belts if they are sitting on the taxi rear seats fitted with seat belts.

The new legislation regarding this requirement took effect on January 1 this year and the law stipulates that passengers must make sure that they are securely fastened to a seat by means of a seat belt.

"Wearing of seat belts could help reduce the chance and severity of injuries caused in traffic accidents, and the introduction of such a seat belt regulation could further enhance the road safety," said the spokesman.

"Any passenger who is found not wearing a seat belt when it is provided will be subject to a maximum fine of $5,000 and imprisonment up to three months."

The spokesman thanked taxi drivers for reminding their passengers to wear seat belts and encouraged them to carry on their good work.

End/Thursday, January 25, 2001