A new edition of the traffic rules has been prepared by leading Ukrainian road safety experts together with representatives of the State Automobile Inspection of Ukraine.
Currently, the traffic rules are formalized as a resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and serve as an explanation to the law "On Road Traffic." Plans include incorporating them directly into the text of this law as a separate section.
It is expected that the norms concerning the rights and obligations of road users will be separated into an independent section of the law "On Road Traffic." According to the authors' idea, only provisions directly regulating the movement process should remain in the rules themselves, while issues of obligations or the technical condition of vehicles will move to other legislative or by-law acts.
No fundamental changes compared to the current traffic rules are expected, but some new points will appear. In particular, it is planned to introduce:
- mandatory use of reflective vests by pedestrians and drivers outside the vehicle on suburban roads,
- prohibition on using hazard warning lights and emergency stop signs for purposes other than intended,
- prohibition on talking on a mobile phone without a special headset,
- mandatory seasonal tire change — from summer to winter and vice versa.
From the outside, it may seem that this is just another demonstration of activity. In reality, one can endlessly make amendments, and the result will remain the same. After all, what matters more is not the changes themselves, but how conscientiously drivers and pedestrians follow the regulations.
It is worth noting that currently Ukraine demonstrates disappointing accident statistics. The country has 10.6 deaths in road accidents per 100 thousand population. For comparison, in Europe this figure is 5.5 per 100 thousand. Every year, about 5 thousand people die in accidents, and about 40 thousand are injured, with a quarter of the victims becoming disabled...
