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Felix Lo

Transport chief welcomes plan to put brake on drivers but insurers not impressed

All red and green minibuses are expected to have speed display units installed within the next few months to deter drivers from speeding, Commissioner for Transport Robert Footman said yesterday.

But firms specialising in insuring minibuses against third-party risks said they would  stick to higher premiums for at least a year and observe the accident rate.

All 515 green minibuses in Hong Kong have been equipped with the device, but many of the red minibuses lack them.

'We have been working with some of them for some time. So we are looking in particular at the early introduction of speed display units,' Mr Footman said.

'We intend that all minibuses should be equipped with them.'

Mr Footman cited an accident last month in which two people were killed and 18 injured when two red minibuses drove through a red light at high speed, hitting a taxi.

The department recently sent a letter the main minibus trade body to solicit members' opinions.

The unit will cost minibus owners $2,000 to $3,000.

Leung Hung, chairman of the  Public and Maxicab Light Bus Merchants' United Association said there shouldn't be any problems with installing the device.

'If this stops the driver speeding, I think the light bus owners are all willing to do it,' he said.

But Yuen Wai-piu, a marketing consultant at insurers Target Company,  said insurance companies would remain cautious about issuing policies for minibuses, as two recent accidents alone had incurred damages amounting to more than $55 million, while the premiums paid by the whole industry totalled only $40 million.

'Some insurers have already adjusted their premiums by more than 100 per cent,' he said. 'We will observe the accident rate for a year. Depending on the situation, we don't rule out further increasing the premiums.'

Mr Footman welcomed the minibus trade's concessions, which include posting a 24-hour traffic police complaints hotline in the buses, displaying the driver's licence clearly on the windscreen, a safety code, warnings against drivers speeding, buying modern vehicles,  as well as the industry's support for  more cameras at road junctions to discourage drivers from running red lights.



Minibuses to have speed monitors 'soon'