Taiwan to impose tougher drug driving penalties
By Wu Liang-yi and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writer
The government is set to impose tougher penalties for drug driving, including vehicle confiscation and fines of up to NT$270,000 for drivers who refuse drug tests, after 23 people were killed in drug driving-related incidents in first half of this year, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said.
President William Lai (賴清德) on Aug. 17 promulgated amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例), increasing penalties for drug driving and drug use, Public Transportation and Supervision Division director Hu Ti-chi (胡迪琦) said yesterday.
The amendments include higher fines, license revocation, liability for passengers traveling in the same vehicle, higher fines for driving without a license after revocation, mandatory addiction treatment and vehicle confiscation, he said.
A drug and alcohol driving checkpoint is pictured in Changhua County in an undated photograph.
Photo: Taipei Times
The ministry is preparing to implement the revised rules and has announced planned amendments to four related regulations.
Under the previewed amendments, drivers caught driving under the influence of drugs would face penalties based on the type of vehicle they were operating.
For a first offense, motorcycle riders could be fined NT$120,000, while car drivers face a NT$150,000 fine.
For a second offense within 10 years, the fines would increase to NT$210,000 for motorcycles and NT$240,000 for cars.
From the third offense, an additional NT$90,000 would be added to each fine, with no upper limit on the total amount.
Drivers who refuse to take a rapid saliva test would face even steeper penalties, the planned amendments say.
A first refusal would result in a NT$270,000 fine for motorcycle and car drivers. A second refusal within 10 years would raise the fine to NT$450,000, while each subsequent refusal would add another NT$180,000 to the previous penalty, again with no cap.
For drug-driving violations and related offenses resulting in license revocation, authorities could publish the offender’s name and photograph, and suspend the vehicle’s license plates for two years, the planned amendments say.
The new measures would allow vehicles to be confiscated on the spot when a driver is caught driving under the influence of drugs or refuses a drug test, while anyone caught driving while their license is revoked would face an additional NT$80,000 fine, and the vehicle would be impounded.
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