GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Road Transport Department (RTD) has defended its action in issuing a tow truck driver with a RM300 summons for having an additional spotlight fixed to the rear of his truck.
Speaking to the New Straits Times, state RTD Automotive Engineering Department chief Khairun Anuar said a spotlight is not allowed to be fixed to the rear of the tow truck as it could pose a danger to other road users.
He said there were other ways to alert road users besides fixing the spotlight to the rear of the truck.
"For example, they can put up the triangle reflector several feet from the tow truck.
"This is because the tow truck already has a beacon light," he said today.
He was responding to a tow truck driver who claimed that he was slapped with a RM300 summons for having an additional spotlight fixed to the rear of his truck.
The man had made a video and taken it to social media to explain himself and the rationale behind his action to fix an additional spotlight to his truck.
In the video which has since gone viral and viewed over 322,000 times on Facebook, the man said the light was meant to help towing workers as well as other road users to notice the truck better whenever they were in the midst of towing any vehicles.
He said their work were often along dark or poorly lit stretches. He said having the spotlight at the rear of the truck would help other road users to notice and accordingly avoid colliding with the truck at an accident scene.
The man said he did his best to explain to the officers, but one of them, including one officer with a three-star rank, l insisted on issuing him with a summons.
Khairun said the additional spotlight fixed to the rear of the truck would emit a bright light that may interfere with the vision of other road users using the same route.
"This is harmful to other road users.
"This can cause an accident, either because they cannot see the road or there is a violation due to sudden braking," he added.