Government has announced a temporary suspension of the automatic traffic fines with immediate effect.
In a statement on Wednesday evening ,government said the suspension is effective midnight.
“The implementation of the automated Express Penalty System (EPS Auto) will be temporarily suspended, effective midnight tonight, to facilitate a comprehensive review of its performance and operational procedures,” the statement said.
According to government, the Minister of Works and Transport, Gen. Katumba Wamala, will deliver an official statement tomorrow detailing the way forward.
“We urge all motorists to continue driving responsibly and to strictly adhere to traffic regulations during this period.”
The development follows a backlash the new automatic fines have received from members of the public.
The newly rolled out express traffic fine scheme utilizing automated technology went live on Friday sparking a feeling of unease among motorists, especially in Kampala.
With the new system, cameras capture vehicle number plates and automatically detects traffic violations such as speeding or running red lights, and instantly sends a fine to the driver’s phone number.
This is coupled with the implementation of the new speeding fines and limits in the country.
This means one will be fined Shs200,000 for exceeding limits by 10–30km/h and Shs600,000 for going beyond that.
On the Northern Bypass, a multi-lane highway originally marked with a 70km/h speed limit, it was lowered to 50km/h and exceeding it means you will have to cough shs600,000 in fines.
The offender has a period of 72 hours to pay the fine or else it will double.
With the automated digital system offenders are unknowingly be captured by CCTV cameras on the road.
However, the new system faced a backlash from members of the public who insisted it was implemented hastily by government.
Taxi drivers had earlier today threatened to carry out a sit down strike starting Monday, if government had not reconsidered the automatic traffic fines.
