Cairo: Foreign taxi drivers, who commit serious traffic violations in Kuwait, will have their permits withdrawn and be deported from the country under a new traffic system, a Kuwaiti newspaper reported, the latest warning against offending expatriates.
Al Anba quoted the General Department of Traffic as saying that Kuwait’s Defence Minister and Acting Interior Minister Talal Al Khalid has directed amending ministerial decrees related to the taxi service.
The new regulations obligate taxi operators to comply with the service rules including designating a uniform for drivers, specifying their working hours in line with the labour code and holding a health fitness certificate for cabbies to be renewed annually in coordination with the Ministry of Health.
The taxi should also meet all technical terms and be clean from inside and outside when in service.
Traffic authorities in coordination with the Ministry of Commerce and the Kuwait Municipality will conduct inspection campaigns on taxi operating firms to ensure compliance with the latest decrees.
Non-compliant operators will be subjected to tough penalties including withdrawal of licences and shutdowns starting from October 1, the paper said.
Kuwaiti traffic authorities registered a total of 25,826 offences in one week starting from August 20, according to Al Anba.
Earlier this month, Kuwaiti authorities warned foreign drivers of public transport that they would be deported from the country if they ignored instructions of pulling off at stops, local media reported.
Assistant Undersecretary of the Interior Ministry for Traffic Affairs, Maj. Gen. Jamal Al Saigh, stressed the necessity of public bus drivers to comply with designated stops for riders to get on and off.
The official said deportation would await any driver, who fails to comply with instructions, according to Al Rai newspaper.
Kuwait has recently embarked on deporting expatriates found guilty of committing serious environmental offences.
Foreigners make up nearly 3.4 million of Kuwait’s overall population of 4.6 million.
