THE Road Transport Administration Department, under the Ministry of Rail Transportation, has begun using equipment to check the roadworthiness of buses and commercial vehicles, an official said last week.

The department’s Chief Engineer of Vehicle Inspections, U Khin Maung Lin, said the checks began on October 1 using equipment acquired at a cost of K63.5 million.

The equipment was used to check trucks capable of carrying loads of three tons and above, buses with 18 or more seats and fuel tankers which can carry 1000 gallons and above, he said.

U Khin Maung Lin was the equipment was based at the department’s branch in Ywathergyi. Other vehicles were checked visually at the departments branches in the eastern, western, southern and northern districts of Yangon Division.

The checks are for exhaust emissions, brakes, wheel alignment, lights and the level of noises produced by a vehicles body and frame.

“We carry out the inspections when the vehicles come to RTAD for their annual license renewal and they are issued with a Vehicle Inspection Certificate if they pass all five tests,” U Khin Maung Lin said.

“We have signed agreements under which equipment-based Vehicle Inspection Certificates are recognised by other Southeast Asian countries,” he said.

U Khin Maung Lin said equipment tests had been conducted on 887 vehicles up until October 30, of which 807 qualified for Vehicle Inspection Certificates. The owners of the 80 vehicles were ordered to have them repaired.

Figures released by the department on September 30 show there are 971,579 licensed vehicles in Myanmar, of which 65,476 are in Yangon Division.