By Marvin Cato | HGP Nightly News
Truck drivers across Guyana have been officially notified as the government moves to enforce strict new regulations aimed at curbing the widespread problem of overloaded trucks damaging roads and bridges.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill announced on Monday that the Cabinet has approved new transport and road safety regulations designed to bring order to what he described as a “free-for-all” culture among some truck operators.
“The regulations have been approved at Cabinet, and I’m in the course of putting it into order,” Edghill confirmed.
He explained that the new framework will enforce strict axle weight limits nationwide.
“Fifteen tonnes per axle — that is the weight we are allowing on bridges and roads across the country,” the minister declared.
Edghill said while trucks play a critical role in Guyana’s ongoing infrastructure boom, many operators have been flouting the rules, overloading their vehicles and causing severe road damage and fatal accidents.
To tackle the problem, the Ministry of Public Works will soon deploy weigh-in-motion scales at key checkpoints and provide the Guyana Police Force (GPF) with 1,000 new truck clamps to immobilize vehicles found violating the new weight restrictions.
“When you are caught overweight, it’s not just a ticket. We’re clamping you — and you’re going to stay there until you discharge your load,” Edghill warned. “If we allow you to continue driving overweight, you’re causing damage as you go, and the ticket can’t pay for that.”
The minister emphasized that the move is part of a broader campaign to improve road safety, extend the lifespan of new highways and bridges, and hold truck operators accountable for their role in maintaining the integrity of national infrastructure.
With Guyana’s massive road expansion and bridge construction projects underway, authorities say these new regulations will ensure that development progress isn’t undone by reckless overloading.
