Road Traffic (Licensing of Drivers) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025 (No. 1)

The Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development has tightened who may be licensed to drive a passenger public service vehicle of the omnibus or commuter omnibus type. Section 4(6)(c) of the Road Traffic (Licensing of Drivers) Regulations, 2023 is repealed and replaced.

Under the new provision, a driver may not be licensed for that class unless they have driving experience of not less than five years and are not less than thirty years of age. Both conditions must be met.

There is a saving for drivers already on the road. Drivers who are still between twenty-five and thirty and who were already authorised to drive an omnibus or commuter omnibus before the publication of these regulations may continue to drive vehicles in that class. So the change bites on new authorisations rather than stripping existing drivers of their livelihoods.

The regulations come into operation on the date of their publication, which was 31 January 2025. Anyone under thirty seeking a new omnibus or commuter omnibus authorisation from that date will not qualify on age, however much experience they have.