DUSHANBE, December 18, Asia-Plus — Right-hand drive (RHD) cars will be banned in Tajikistan soon, Asia-plus has learned from Qurbon Saidov, an official with the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC).
According to him, Tajikistan has right-hand traffic (RHT) and the RHD cars create alert conditions on roads. “Customs officers have been charged to stop import of the RHD to the country,” Saidov said.
In the meantime, Tajik traffic police authorities have found it difficult to say how many RHD cars have to date been registered with the traffic police departments in the country.
A total number of cars in Tajikistan is 239,000; of them, 206,000 are private.
Traffic directionality refers to regulations requiring all vehicular traffic to keep either to the left or the right side of the road. Whether the right or the left is specified depends on the laws of each country. This is so fundamental to vehicular transport that it is commonly referred to as the rule of the road. The purpose of the rule of the road is to facilitate traffic flow and reduce the likelihood of head-on collisions. About 34% of the world population drive on the left, and 66% on the right.
A country”s traffic-handedness is most properly designated with reference to the rule of the road, i.e., the side of the road along which traffic flows. Using such a referent, countries are said to have left-hand traffic (LHT) or right-hand traffic (RHT). However, traffic-handedness is sometimes designated with reference to the placement of the steering wheel. Using this terminology, countries are said to be left-hand drive (LHD) or right-hand drive (RHD). In almost all cases, the placement of the steering wheel is opposite to the rule of the road: LHT countries use RHD vehicles, and RHT countries use LHD vehicles.
