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Fiji’s road transport and safety agencies will be merged to create a more streamlined and efficient land transport industry in the country.
The Office of the Solicitor-General will draft legislation to effect the merger of the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and the National Road Safety Council (NRSC), Cabinet decided this week.
The move is part of reforms to Fiji’s land transport sector, a statement said.
The NRSC was set up in 1994 as a statutory authority to be responsible for road safety while the LTA was set up in 1998 to be in charge of the registration of vehicles and drivers and vehicles testing and licensing, and to regulate Fiji’s land transport sector.
Minister for Works, Transport and Public Utilities, Captain Timoci Natuva said there were a number of overlapping functions between the two entities.
He said that apart from streamlining the industry, the merger would allow for better co-ordination and transparency.
Natuva ordered an independent audit of the LTA last year saying it was beset by corruption.
The outcome of the investigation, completed late last year, has not been released.
In the past two years, several senior LTA officials have been suspended pending investigations into abuse and corruption claims.
