Control over the situation on the roads and motor transport is being tightened in Turkmenistan.
Two types of registration plates are used in Turkmenistan: green for official vehicles and white for privately-owned cars.Correspondents of “Chronicles of Turkmenistan” report that effective 20 May green registration plates can be used only on public transport.
The road traffic department of the Ashgabat police is now stopping vehicles with green plated owned by private companies.
There are many vehicles with green plates owned by companies in regular and fee-based car pounds while their owners are busily obtaining new documents. Only cars with green registration plates, which belong to state-run agencies, now circulate in Ashgabat.
It is unknown why the Interior Ministry is concerned about vehicles owned by private businesses.A police officer interviewed by a correspondent of “Chronicles of Turkmenistan” said that recently there were “too many” vehicles with green plates on the roads.
A source at “Chronicles of Turkmenistan” said that many drivers registered their vehicles as company property in order to obtain green plates and use their cars as taxis. Vehicles owned by privately-owned agencies or private companies are less frequently stopped by police and therefore it is easier to work with such vehicles.
According to him, companies which had up to 50 vehicles in their fleet, have been identified in Ashgabat. However, officials of the Interior Ministry officials reckon that 10 to 15 vehicles should be sufficient even for large businesses.
On 21 May Radio “Azatlyk” reported that Ashgabat police officers were again stopping vehicles because their drivers were suspected of offering illegal taxi services.
The news outlet Turkmen News reports that many cars are also towed to car pounds in Dashoguz. It is not specified whether these were privately-owned vehicles or company cars.
Control over the road traffic situation was tightened by the authorities following the session of the Security Council on 6 April when President Serdar Berdymukhammedov dismissed the Interior Minister Ovezdurdy Khodzhaniyazov for violations of road traffic rules by Ashgabat drivers.
At the 5 May session of the Security Council held on the newly-appointed Interior Minister Mukhammet Khydyrov was charged with “eliminating shortcomings related to observing road traffic rules within a short timeframe”.
It is not permitted to engage in providing private transportation services without a license in Turkmenistan and the Interior Ministry occasionally conducts raids against illegal taxi drivers.
However, given the high unemployment and the demand for taxis, many drivers resume their services as soon the road inspections are over.The post Company cars with green registration plates towed to car pounds in Ashgabat first appeared on Chronicles of Turkmenistan.