Drivers to Be Fined for Smoking in Vehicles While in Motion

The National Assembly of Armenia is discussing a draft law presented by the government, which among other changes, proposes to apply a fine of 1 penalty point for drivers of personal vehicles who smoke while in motion, in addition to public transport and taxis.

According to Armenpress, the draft law on amendments and additions to the Code of Administrative Offenses was presented at the National Assembly by the Deputy Chief of Police Ara Fidanyan. “The aim of the draft is to ensure the proper and complete implementation of the system of penalty points applied for violations in road traffic, to prevent possible violations of traffic rules by persons who do not have the right to drive. In particular, it is planned to include the responsibility for committing that act by a person without the right to drive in the sanctions of the respective articles,” said Fidanyan.

This means that violations for which administrative penalties only entail the deprivation of the right to drive will also entail administrative liability in the form of a fine if committed by a person without the right to drive.

“In addition to public transport and taxis, a penalty point will also be applied for smoking while driving personal vehicles,” Fidanyan added. Consequently, it is established that the use of tobacco products or substitutes for tobacco products by the driver while in motion will result in a fine equivalent to seven times the minimum wage and the application of 1 penalty point.

The purpose of several provisions proposed in the bill is to temporarily postpone the application of the penalty points system for violations recorded by the Road Police's patrol units. The legislation is set to explicitly state that until July 1, 2022, penalty points as an administrative penalty will only be applied for traffic rule violations detected by recording devices.