Oh, you thought the government was just making empty threats?
Nineteen motorists found out the hard way that the government was dead serious about hauling emergency lane abusers to court when they were slapped with fines totalling RM29,100 by the Magistrates Court in Alor Gajah on Monday.
According to The New Straits Times, the traffic offenders were fined between RM1,500 and RM2,000 each — in default of between one and two months’ jail — by Magistrate Nor Azizah Yusof after pleading guilty to using the emergency lane on the North-South Expressway (NSE).
They had reportedly commited the offences at the KM222 mark of the NSE at 5pm on May 22.
They were charged under Rule 53(1) of the Road Traffic Rules 1959 and punished under Section 119(2) of the Road Transport Act 1987, the daily reported.
This wasn’t the first time the Alor Gajah Magistrates Court has meted out such fines to emergency lane abusers.
On July 18, 20 traffic offenders became the first motorists in the country to be hauled to court and slapped with a fine totalling RM28,000 for abusing the emergency lane.
