The latest draft of the Law on Road Traffic Order and Safety also stipulates that when transporting children under 6 years old on motorbikes or motorcycles without an adult sitting with them, they must have a seat belt or a seat specifically for children.
The new point of this draft compared to the previous one is that the regulation that cars have child safety equipment only applies in cases where "there is no adult sitting with them". However, the draft does not mention the regulation applicable to private cars or commercial vehicles.
Child safety equipment in cars typically includes infant cribs for children under 2 years old, seats for children 2-6 years old, and boosters for children 6-10 years old.
Agreeing with the regulation that children must have safety equipment in cars, Associate Professor Dr. Pham Viet Cuong, Director of the Center for Policy Research and Injury Prevention (University of Public Health ) said that it should be applied in cases where adults are sitting with them. "Adults sitting with them cannot hold children for long distances, so safety equipment is still needed," said Mr. Cuong.
According to Mr. Cuong, the above regulation should be applied to private vehicles because these are vehicles that move at high speeds and are frequently used to transport children. However, the law should encourage the use of child safety equipment in commercial vehicles, with a roadmap for application to commercial vehicles such as taxis and contract vehicles.
Meanwhile, Mr. Nguyen Van Quyen, Chairman of the Vietnam Automobile Transport Association, said that the regulation only applies in cases where "there is no adult sitting with them" as drafted is reasonable. "Requiring drivers to install safety equipment when transporting young children, even when there is an adult sitting with them, would be too rigid. The person sitting with them can hold the young child in their arms and remind the older child about the sitting position in the car," Mr. Quyen analyzed and suggested that the authorities clarify the standards for safety equipment used for children in cars such as seat belts, seats, and cushions on airplanes.
A public opinion poll conducted by a research team from the University of Transport from 2020 to 2023 showed that out of 383 car users surveyed, 322 people supported the use of child safety devices (84%).
According to the research team, seat belts in cars are effective in reducing 70% of serious injuries and 40% of deaths for people sitting in the car. However, seat belts are only designed for adults. In the case of young children, seat belts cannot hold the child's body in a collision, and the child can even be injured by the seat belt itself.
According to the National Traffic Safety Committee, there are about 1,800-2,000 traffic accidents involving children each year, of which about 600-700 involve cars. If regulations on the use of child safety devices are effectively applied, it could reduce the number of cases of children being injured or killed in cars in Vietnam by 400-500.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in-depth report on child safety devices in cars, child safety devices reduce the risk of serious injury by up to 80% compared to children using only adult seat belts; booster seats for 6-10 year olds reduce the risk of injury by 77% compared to children not using them. According to the Global Road Safety Report, to date, nearly 100 countries have issued regulations requiring the use of child safety devices in private cars.
At the upcoming 7th session of the 15th National Assembly , the National Assembly is expected to consider and pass the Law on Road Traffic Order and Safety.
TB (according to VnExpress)Source
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