Image from: www.autoblog.com

SENSOR FOR HYBRID CARS

Many diseases are silent killers such as hypertension, heart disease, high cholesterol, diabetes, and also cancer. Remember the song "Killing me softly with his songs'? Perhaps depends on the singer.
Now hybrid cars are one of the silent killers factor. There have been many ideas thrown around in an effort to make hybrid vehicles safer on the road. Therefore, Toyota Corporation in Malaysia is finding ways before introducing the cars in Malaysia.
The Vibering concept, which is able to sense approaching doom by listening for key sounds made by a hybrid car. When worn in conjunction with its companion watch, the Vibering listens and alerts its wearer whenever a vehicle may be coming and how far it is from making impending contact (see www.autoblog.com for details).
For my opinion, place a sensor in the vehicle that will make sounds when it approaches anything. What about Honda Hybrid cars? What will they do so that they will not be silent killer contributor?

SAFETY FOR SCHOOLCHILDREN

How long school busses can operates? Maximum 20 years? Does a school bus operator care for the safety of school children? What you say?

NEW SEAT RULING

Mandatory for rear seat passengers to wear seat belts beginning this month but no summons for the offence will be issued until the end of August. The ruling is only effective for cars registered after January 1995. Owners of cars without rear seat belts have three years to get them installed. Police would work with the Road Safety Department to distribute flyers to motorists. Federal traffic police chief Senior Asst Comm II Datuk Hamzah Taib, when contacted, said police personnel would advise motorists on the new ruling until the three-month period was up, when summonses would be issued. Many suggested that more information be disseminated via the media on the new rule.

Wah....waahh......wahhhhhhhhhhhh! But what's the fuss all about. Only implement the ruling after three years and that's it! Case closed.

reference from TheStar:

Jane Jacob (left) buckling up as her daughter Previtha looks on. Both have always used the rear seat belt and welcome the new ruling

Owners of locally-made cars can get rear safety belts installed

By TEH ENG HOCK and ROYCE CHEAH
PETALING JAYA: Owners of locally-made cars not already fitted with rear seat belts will get them installed for free.
Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Keat said an agreement has been worked out with the manufacturers, banks and insurance companies and a memorandum of understanding (MoU) is expected to be inked soon.
“We have deliberated on this systematically as it involves money and engineering. We hope this initiative can help lessen the people’s burden with the new ruling to wear rear seat belts,” he said.
“I wanted original manufacturers involved because fitting anchorage points for seat belts must be done properly,” he said. “It is part of their corporate social responsibility programme.”
A source in a major local car manufacturer said the signing ceremony would take place tomorrow. Details on where to get the cars fitted with free rear seat belts would be announced later.
“I would like to advise passengers in cars already fitted with seat belts to buckle up when travelling and for car owners without rear seat belts to install them promptly and not wait until the last minute,” he said.
The ruling came into force yesterday making it mandatory for rear seat passengers to wear seat belts.
However, no summons for the offence will be issued until the end of August. The ruling is only effective for cars registered after January 1995.
Owners of cars without rear seat belts have three years to get them installed.
The ministry kicked off a media campaign yesterday to inform the public on the importance of wearing rear seat belts. It will run for six months.
Ong said the ministry wanted to drive home the message that enforcement of the ruling was “not so much focused on punishment” but for the safety of motorists.
A Transport Ministry official said the idea is not to pass down the burden of fixing the seat belts to the user wherever possible.
“It should be part of the corporate social responsibility of the manufacturers.”
The official said the idea was to help the public so that there was no excuse for them not to use the rear seat belts and to cover all possible loopholes.
“We do not want the voice of 19% of car owners who do not have rear seat belts to affect the 81% who do have rear seat belts.”
Perodua Kancil and Kenari cars manufactured in 1998 and until mid-2004 will be exempted from the compulsory backseat belt rule.
Road Safety Department director-general Datuk Suret Singh said this was because the models produced during this period did not have anchorage points for rear seat belts.
“Some models which came out between 2004 and 2005 have anchorage points but no rear seat belts.
“The department has proposed that Perodua offer special packages to owners of these Kancil and Kenari models to install rear seat belts.
“They have three years to do that,” he said.

and

Many not aware of rule

By STEVEN DANIEL
PETALING JAYA: Despite the rear seat belt ruling being introduced yesterday, many people still claimed ignorance of it.
Previtha Rajah, 33, said she was unaware of the start of the three-month advocacy period for the use of rear seat belts.
However, the mother of three can afford to “overlook” the ruling – for she has always got her rear seat passengers to buckle up anyway.
“For safety purposes, I have never failed to get my children, maid and other passengers to buckle up,” she added when met at a petrol kiosk here.
Not a problem: Jane Jacob (left) buckling up as her daughter Previtha looks on. Both have always used the rear seat belt and welcome the new ruling.
Roslan Hashim, 34, a technician, said he had heard of the plan but did not know it had already been implemented.
“Betulkah, saya pun tak tahu (Is it, I did not know),” he said, suggesting that more information be disseminated via the media on the new rule.
A 50-year-old businessman, who only wanted to be known as Choy, went one step further by questioned the need for the ruling.
“Most cars have only two rear seat belts. Does that mean I can only drive four people in my car?” he asked.
Federal traffic police chief Senior Asst Comm II Datuk Hamzah Taib, when contacted, said police personnel would advise motorists on the new ruling until the three-month period was up, when summonses would be issued.
“We will advise motorists of the new rule whenever we have the chance. We will not spare any effort,” he added.
He said police would work with the Road Safety Department to distribute flyers to motorists.

PLEASE BUCKLE UP!

All passengers are not exempted from not using rear seat belt. So ‘Kancil’ cannot occupy 7 people already ah? So, more lives will be saved. How many drivers are using it anyway?

Let’s face the facts first. Until now, I still can see bikers not wearing crash helmets, parents sending two or three children to school and yet did not wear crash helmet. This situation proves that there is no enforcement in Malaysia. Only 'hangat-hangat tahi ayam'.

Reference from themalaysianinsider:

Free rear seat belts for locally-made cars

KUALA LUMPUR, June 1 — The government and local car manufacturers have struck a deal to provide and install rear seat belts for free to locally-made cars soon.
Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Keat said an agreement had been worked out and that a memorandum of understanding between the government and manufacturers is expected to be inked in the next few days.
"We have deliberated this systematically as it involved money and the engineering part of it. We hope this initiative can help lessen the people's burden with the new ruling to wear rear seat belts from today," he told reporters after opening a Chinese arts exhibition today.
Ong said the government was also working with the corporate sector to set up a fund to subsidise the cost of installing rear seat belts.
From today, rear seat passengers in cars are required to wear seat belts. After a three-month advocacy period, offenders will be fined for breaching the new law.
"I would like to advise passengers of cars already fitted with seat belts to buckle up when travelling and for car owners who have not installed the belts to do so promptly and not wait till the last minute," he said.
The government had given three years grace period for owners of cars without rear seat belts to get it installed. Currently, almost 90 per cent of vehicles are fitted with rear seat belts.
Ong, who is also a MCA vice-president and Selangor MCA chief, said he would meet Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Musa Hassan to get details on last week's incident of a group of thugs attacking Bandar Mahkota residents who were trying to remove concrete barricades built by Grand Saga Sdn Bhd, concessionaire of the Cheras-Kajang Highway.
The controversy ended on Friday following the Cabinet's decision to keep the disputed toll-free access road to Cheras-Kajang Highway open until the issue was settled in court. — Bernama

TEACHERS ALL WORKS AND NO PLAY MAKES THE PRINCIPAL ALOHA!

Some school administrator do not seem to like the teachers spending their holidays with their kids or the most favourite 'bujang' teachers simply 'nothing to do' at home. Especially rural school, the administrator which pursue in 'garnishing' the school more than academics will ask teachers to do some arrangement for form 1 registration before the next term starts, setting up banners, putting up backdrops and take care of students for a day or two during SPM's examination period if they do not apply to invigilate government examinations. Besides that, teachers have to come early for meeting just a week before the school reopen. Well, total up the days at school. Of course it is not even half of the holiday taken but reminds you, some teachers are not local there. Can you imagine how many days taken for the teachers to travel vice-versa?

Reference from TheStar:

Schools area reminded to use only two Saturdays in a monoth for weekend activities, Penang National Union of the Teaching Profession (NUTP) chairman Lim Ming Tzong said.
He said some teachers had complained their schools had imposed upon them to participate in weekend activities, some almost every Saturday.
“In 2006, the Public Services Department (PSD) issued a circular stating that all government departments were allowed to hold activities up to only two Saturdays in a month.
“So, school heads must abide by this ruling and not unduly victimise the teachers,” he said.
Lim said that according to the Education Ministry, schools were also not allowed to conduct curricular activities, including tuition classes, and co-curricular activities on both Saturdays.
The schools, he said, were only allowed to hold parent-teacher association (PTA) meetings, meet-the-parents sessions and staff meetings on Saturdays.
“School heads must be mindful that if they still conduct activities with students after school hours, they could be held res-ponsible if any mishap takes place.
“The state Education Department is closed over the weekend, and it may not provide necessary legal support for the teacher incharge,” he said.
Lim also called on school heads to refrain from unnecessarily recalling tea-chers back for duty during school holidays.
He said unlike teachers, senior assistants and afternoon supervisors, who were not entitled to annual leave, headmasters, principals and office staff were given up to 35 days in annual leave per year.
“So, just because they (the school heads) have to report for duty during the school holidays, it is ridiculous to instruct teachers to do likewise, merely to accompany them.”
Lim said many schools often prepared a roster for teachers to work during school holidays, but the number of days should not exceed half of the total length of the holidays.
He said many teachers had complained they were still unclear over the reasons to return to school during the holidays.

TRAFFIC OFFENDERS ON CANDID CAMERA

Smile, you are on candid camera! If I'm not mistaken, last year the government came out with an idea to punish traffic offenders through a rewarding scheme. Haven't they learned from their mistakes? Some might snap a photo that looks like an offence. Is it better if the traffic police officers take shot on plain clothes? Maybe put on a spy camera somewhere at accident prone area or an area where offenders will make such as jump red lights, over taking double lane and jump queue on a busy street. Then, recruit more traffic police officers.

Reference from http://www.panducermat.org.my

Click and post pictures of road offenders

PUTRAJAYA: The Road Safety Department has created an Internet portal to allow the public to be the private eyes of the department and the police in an effort to reduce accidents.
Among others, the website, www.panducermat.org.my, enables motorists to take snapshots of traffic offenders.It also contains driving tips, sections for suggestions, a forum, a road safety blog and identification of risky or accident-prone stretches in the country, including Sabah and Sarawak. Snapshots of offenders can be posted there and the department will forward them to the relevant law enforcement agencies for further action, said department director-general Datuk Suret Singh after the launching of the portal by Transport Minister Datuk Ong Tee Keat at the ministry yesterday.He added the portal would allow members of the public to interact not only with the department, but also the police.
"We are actually providing an interactive, educational and responsive platform for the public in efforts to reduce road fatalities and accidents. "We believe this interactive engagement will make our motorists more considerate and responsible towards other road users."He said all reports or complaints would be acted upon. "We promise rapid action against traffic offenders and the particulars of complainants will be kept confidential."Suret, however, cautioned that only passengers or pedestrians should use their cellphones to take snapshots on the road.