The region could save billions of dollars in annual road maintenance and transport fees, following approval of a Bill by ministers from East African Community partner states.
The Vehicle Load Control Bill will harmonize load limits for commercial vehicles plying EAC roads to 56 tonnes.
“With a harmonized legal regime to govern vehicle loads in the region, businesses and governments in the EAC stand to register an estimated one billion dollars in annual savings,” said EAC Deputy Secretary General, Dr Enos Bukuku.
The proposed law will also decriminalize overloading while digitizing weighbridge processes. This will reduce issues of corruption and cut time spent transporting goods long-distance.
There are several bottlenecks involved in movement of cargo with the region with some reports estimating that over 19 hours is spent crossing the border and weighbridges for a truck moving from Mombasa to Kampala. These regulative bottlenecks make it very expensive to do business in the region.
Drivers caught overloading will be required to pay the fees instantly and electronically. Credit cards, debit cards and bank guaranteed cheques will be favoured over cash.
Fees collected through the new system will be channeled to roads agencies.
Currently, fees collected from overloading vehicles in Kenya and Uganda end up in the general budget, even as roads agencies struggle to raise funds for maintenance.
