Karachi: The Sindh government has imposed age restrictions on heavy commercial vehicles (including buses), forbidding cities over 35 to operate within cities and set a maximum age limit of 25 for vehicles operating on inter-city routes.
Commercial vehicles over 20 operating on intra-provincial routes have won RAD licenses under an amendment to Sindh Automotive Rules notified on Tuesday.
Talk to it dawnSindh senior minister Sharjeel Memon, also owns a portfolio of the transport sector, said on Wednesday that the amendments were intended to protect lives and property, reduce accident rates and increase transparency in the transportation system.
He pointed out that the old and poorly maintained heavy vehicles are Traffic accident In the province, including Karachi.
Sindh government sets age limits for vehicles to improve road safety
He added: “The new regulations require heavy vehicles to have effective fitness certification and necessary safety equipment to operate on the road.”
He said that on routes outside the province, licenses will not be issued for vehicles over 20 years old. He added: “Inter-city routes will not allow vehicles over 25 years of age, and the maximum age limit for vehicles operating within the city is fixed to 35 years of age.”
Mr Memon said heavy commercial vehicles are now needed to obtain a fitness certificate from the center approved by the transportation department.
He added: “The violation will result in significant penalties on the owners, with all fines paid online directly in the provincial government’s account.”
The transport minister said the law will be implemented within one year, during which all vehicles pass road attitude tests. He added: “In the initial stage, minor violations will suffer small fines, and penalties for repeated crimes continue to increase – the fines for the second violation are as high as Rs 200,000 and one-third of the violations are Rs 3 lakh.”
The transport minister said the provincial government has authorized all heavy commercial vehicles to install tracking and safety systems. “The features required include GPS tracking, HD front and rear cameras, driver surveillance cameras and a 360-degree camera system,” he added.
Mr Memon said the chassis protection guard must prevent smaller vehicles and motorcycles from hitting the accident.
He said the safety equipment must be fully operational. “Vehicles will not be registered, issued fitness certificates, obtained a license or allowed ownership transfer without verifying that these systems are functioning properly,” he added.
The Transport Minister said that failure to install or intentional damage to the required system would result in substantial fines and temporary vehicle seizures. He added: “If the issue is not resolved within 14 days, the registration of the vehicle will be permanently cancelled.”
Mr Mason said these amendments have been introduced to protect lives and property, reduce accidents, and make transportation systems more transparent through modern technology.
He said the installation of modern tracking and camera systems will not only support the enforcement of traffic laws, but will also help determine the cause of the accident and ensure transparent investigations. He made it clear: “A heavy fine will be imposed on any violation and unsafe vehicles will not be allowed on the road.”
The senior minister said the provincial government has taken these difficult decisions to protect lives and property and they will implement them without exception.
He added: “There has been clear instructions to the traffic police, the GST police and the transport authorities that no concessions shall be made when these laws are implemented.”
He said adopting such a modern system not only provides relief to citizens, but also helps to develop transportation sectors along modern routes.
Posted at Dawn on September 25, 2025
