PHNOM PENH: The new administration is enacting policies across ministries in an effort to clean up the streets. Yesterday, Minister of Interior Sar Sokha instructed police commissioners to be on the lookout for vehicles with dark tinted windows or those that have stickers on the front or rear windshields, saying that they could cause traffic accidents.

On November 30, the Ministry of Interior, which oversees the police and prison forces, launched the second phase of the National Road Safety Action Plan 2021-2030.

The Interior Minister said, “I ask the Capital and Provincial Commissioners to carry out [the new policy] and to have a common standard, otherwise it is a complete mess. We are not prohibiting everything, but there should not be any stickers on the back of the car. Some container trucks put stickers [with slogans]…giving people something interesting to read while driving at 110 [kph], which could cause a traffic accident.”

The ministry has registered more than 7 million vehicles, mostly motorcycles, including 1 million cars. This is a massive increase from 1998, when just over 20,000 vehicles were registered.

Traffic accidents area leading cause of death in Cambodia as prosperity brings more people to the roads. According to a study by experts from the Ministry of Public Works and Transport and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Cambodia lost about $466.8 million in 2019 or 1.7% of its annual GDP. Of the total cost, 88.8% was due to loss of life and associated lifetime earnings.