Egypt to Licence Tuk-tuk Driving by Presidential Decree

Egypt’s traffic authority will licence existing motorbikes and three-wheeled vehicles commonly known as tuk-tuks, once it receives a copy of the recent presidential decree adding both vehicles to the traffic law.

Al-Ahram Arabic news website reported on Thursday that owners of the motorcycles and tuk-tuks have a thirty-day grace period as of the first of April to legalise the statuses of their vehicles.

The country’s interim president, Adly Mansour, issued a long-awaited presidential decree modifying the state’s traffic law no 66/1973 to allow tuk-tuks and motorcycle owners to obtain driving licences last week.

Following the grace period, drivers of the aforementioned vehicles who do not hold licences will face confiscation.

Egypt’s State Commissioners Authority (SCA) issued a non-binding decision on Saturday to the courts to halt imports of tuk-tuks.

The state judicial body explained that due to their small size, tuk-tuks are widely used to committ crimes and are considered a serious threat to security in several areas nationwide, particularly in slums.

GB Auto is the sole assembler of tuk-tuks in Egypt.

According to the Cairo-based investment bank Beltone Financial, two- and three-wheelers represent 12.2 percent of GB Auto’s nine-month revenue in 2013 and 13.9 percent of its revenue in 2012.

Source: Ahram Online