| Siti Hajar |
THE Land Transport Department (JPD) yesterday announced that it will phase out the walk-in inspections of private vehicles aged seven years and above by December 14, 2015.
Starting on November 16, 2015, the department will limit the number of walk-in inspections at the Vehicle Inspection Centre (VIC), JPD Beribi, Gadong to 40 vehicles in the morning and 30 in the afternoon on weekdays to prevent the usual long queue of applicants.
During a press conference held at the JPD Headquarters in Beribi, the JPD Director, Dr Haji Supry bin Haji Ladi said that the booking system aims to reduce waiting time for customers and ensure that operations are systematic and manageable for the inspection officers and the public.
The service at other JPD locations will remain unchanged, he added.
The public are advised to call 2448008 or 2448009 to book an appointment at least three days prior to the intended date of inspection or to make a booking within a three-month period.
Director of Land Transport, Dr Haji Supry bin Haji Ladi speaking during a press conference
Booking times are from 8am to 12pm and from 1.45pm to 4.15pm. People who make an early booking are advised to arrive at the facility 15 minutes prior to their appointment.
The JPD director said that the booking system is also to spread the number of vehicle inspections evenly throughout the month as opposed to the large number of vehicles that currently come in for inspection towards the end of the month and first week of the month.
The inspection slips will be valid for one month to provide customers with leeway to complete the process for obtaining their vehicle licences.
The walk-in vehicle inspections will eventually be phased out on December 14. After December 14, requests for walk-in vehicle inspections will not be entertained. However, booths will be made available on location to facilitate the booking process at counter 2 of the JPD.
For Fridays, the department will no longer accept walk-in vehicle inspections from Friday, November 27.
Acknowledging the potential challenges of the booking system such as when the JPD’s phones might not be reachable due to the large volume of incoming calls, the JPD director said that the authorities are working on an online booking system.
Since the booking system was introduced in June this year, he said that 35 per cent of those looking to inspect their cars at the JPD Beribi facility made earlier bookings, and feedback so far has been positive.
An average of 3,700 vehicles were inspected from June up until October with a steady increase of 1,100 telephone booking customers from June to August and 1,500 from September to October.
The numbers are still low but the authorities are optimistic that the public will eventually accept the booking system.
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