PUTRAJAYA, April 23 — The Transport Ministry will implement stricter guidelines for bus drivers and operators following a series of bus crashes on major highways in recent weeks.

Its deputy minister, Datuk Abdul Aziz Kaprawi, said double-decker buses would be temporarily banned from ferrying passengers to six hilly routes — Cameron Highlands, Genting Highlands, Fraser’s Hill, Bukit Larut, Gunung Jerai and Bukit Tinggi — from May 1.

“The ban will stay until the authorities study the routes and identify the common causes of accidents in those areas,” he said.

“This decision was made based on the recommendations by the independent advisory panel to the ministry set up after the tragic Genting Highlands bus crash last year.”

Thirty-seven people, including the driver, were killed in the crash on August 21.

“We were, in fact, carrying out an extensive risk mapping programme to identify other accident-prone areas and to rectify the situation but we did not expect the series of bus crashes to happen in recent months,” Abdul Aziz said.

He said the bus drivers and operators would be subjected to greater scrutiny, including daily drug tests conducted by the National Anti-Drug Agency on the drivers, and the introduction of a star rating system from July 1 to ensure the operators complied with safety standards.

“The drug tests will be done on all bus drivers at main terminals nationwide. This is to make sure the drivers of the 4,300 registered buses in the country are not under the influence of any banned substance while behind the wheel,” he said.

“The star rating system will, in the future, see the participation of passengers who will be able to rate the buses they board.

“The operators will also be required to monitor their buses through the global positioning system (GPS), which must be left on at all times.”

The ministry said all buses must be fitted with seatbelts by January 1 next year and that they must comply with the United Nations Regulations to ensure the superstructure and chassis of the buses was safe.

Malay Mail reported yesterday that six bus crashes since March 17 had claimed six lives.

The perceived inaction by the authorities led to a public outcry as advisory panel chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye and panel member Datuk Abd Razak Abd Malek said they were baffled by the attitude of the authorities despite handing their recommendations to the ministry on January 28.

The report was prepared with the aim of preventing future road accidents and to promote road safety.

Lee and Abd Razak lamented that their proposals, including an immediate ban of double-decker buses on hilly roads and the formulation of a policy requiring mandatory road safety audit for all roads including private roads, had not been implemented.

Abd Razak had also suggested random drug tests on bus drivers similar to that practised in the rail industry.

The panel suggested a policy be drafted to ensure all seats in buses, except stage buses plying urban areas, were installed

with seatbelts.