Happy New Year, fellow riders!
January 1, 2013 brings some new and/or amended traffic laws. According to the
Global Times, this is a summary:
1 point:
- Failing to carry a driving license or vehicle registration
- Failing to display a roadworthiness certificate on vehicle
- Failing to display an insurance certificate on vehicle
- Driving without the correct lights
2 points:
- Using a mobile phone while driving
- Driving an vehicle overloaded by up to 20% over capacity
- Overtaking and cutting into a line of traffic
- Using the wrong lane at a controlled intersection
- Driving without seatbelts on an expressway
3 points:
- Driving recklessly when approaching a pedestrian crosswalk
- Overtaking on highway ramps
- Ignoring road markings
- Failing to give way to pedestrians or vehicles when making a turn
- Failing to give way to an oncoming vehicle making a left turn, when your vehicle is turning right
- Driving up to 50% over the speed limit
- Failing to give way to emergency vehicles
- Overtaking when it is prohibited or driving on the wrong side of an expressway
- Driving in the wrong lane of urban expressways
6 points:
- Driving with a suspended license
- Using the emergency lane on expressways when traffic is congested
- Running a red light
- Failure to give way to a School Bus
12 points:
- Driving in reverse on highway, driving on wrong side of highway, or making a U-turn on a highway
- Driving at more than 50% over the speed limit
- Driving while under the influence of alcohol, or driving while intoxicated
- Leaving the scene of an accident
- Failure to properly display license number plates, obstructing number plates, defacing number plates
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I haven't been able to do a line by line comparison old/new, but I think the above are the key modifications to the existing Traffic Code. For example, I think it is already the case that you get 12 points for using fake or copied plates, whereas it used to be 6 points for not properly displaying legal plates, obstructing plates (e.g,. on motorcycles, placing a heavy chain/lock over rear plate), or "defacing" plates (I think that means changing a number with black tape). That 6 points has been doubled.
I think there are also changes to the attached fines, but I have not been able to find any info on that.
As we all know, the key to the new laws will be year-round enforcement.
Again, Happy New Year to all. Wishing you a safe & prosperous 2013.

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