New self-declaration system for five items aims to expedite Puspakom checks, says Loke

KUALA LUMPUR: Five items will soon fall under a self-declaration system for vehicles undergoing inspections at Puspakom, says Anthony Loke.

The Transport Minister said that beginning March 17, certain vehicle inspection items that are not related to safety concerns will be exempted from mandatory checks.

The items are vehicle body lettering, speed signs, first aid kits, vehicle registration numbers, and the condition of passenger seats in public service vehicles.

He said this move aims to allow faster inspections at Puspakom centres.

“A lot of vehicle owners have been complaining that inspections at Puspakom were taking too long, (and) there were long queues, too.

“This longer duration was mainly due to backlogged appointments.

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"This decision (self-declaration) was made by the Transport Ministry and Road Transport Department to address these concerns,” he told reporters when visiting the Wangsa Maju Puspakom Centre here today.

However, Loke said that enforcement authorities will still carry out inspections of these items on the road to ensure continued compliance.

He also said Puspakom would also take several measures to further expedite its operations.

This includes removing multiple-slot bookings for inspection appointments with the same vehicle registration number.

“Puspakom will also improve the booking system by freezing the original inspection slot if it is rescheduled to another date.

“This measure is taken to prevent the original slot from being misused or sold to other parties,” he added.

He also said that all inspection centres would be operating for 12 hours a day throughout March on top of operating on Saturdays, excluding centres in Langkawi, Kedah and Pekan, Pahang.

Loke added that his ministry has held discussions with the Works Ministry and the Malaysian Highway Authority to consider granting exemptions to heavy vehicles that are required to undergo inspections at Puspakom.

“The vehicles must submit proof of the Puspakom inspection booking slip to the relevant enforcement authorities,” he added.