The National Police Agency has informed that teenagers are involved in stealing cars. The senior specialist at the Traffic Police Department and captain D.Gankhuyag said, “As of the first quarter of 2024, 271 calls related to ‘vehicle theft’ were registered. 232 of them were in Ulaanbaatar City and 39 were in the local area. There are 109 cases that were returned as non-criminal. In particular, those calls were considered non-criminal because of reasons such as they called the police when they could not find the place where they parked their vehicles, wrong parking, family members took their cars without telling them, and when their cars were taken away due to non-payment of the loan”.
He then continued, “Older vehicles with a keyless entry system are often stolen. There have been many cases of car theft around shops, when the car was stolen while the owner was buying something, or when the car was being heated in winter. It is also unfortunate that teenagers are stealing cars. For example, two 15-year-old boys stole a Toyota Camry from the Bayangol District on April 20. It was also found that 12- and 14-year-old boys had taken the Prius 41 car from a household yard in Bayanzurkh District on May 13. Therefore, parents need to take care of their children. Vehicle theft carries a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison. If we look at the reasons for teenagers driving cars without permission and stealing them, driven by their interest in cars leads to a crime”.
On the other hand, many children are becoming victims of traffic accidents due to the carelessness of drivers, parents, and guardians. Thus, the officials informed that traffic awareness trainings are being organized. In this regard, B.Ochirbat, head of Prevention Department, said, “Within the framework of the ‘Safe Living Skills’ curriculum, more than 200 trainers have been trained to teach traffic rules to students and teachers of the capital city’s schools, and a training manual has been prepared and work to publish and deliver it to schools have started in order to prevent children from traffic accidents. In the third quarter of the academic year, a joint training was conducted with the traffic rules teachers of the driver training institute in about 205 public and private schools”.
Moreover, the Traffic Police Department has prepared a lesson based on AR technology to teach children the correct habits and rules of participating in traffic from an early age. The course can be used in rural areas and does not require data. The contents of the lesson, such as crossing the road, not playing near the river, and not running in front of the car, are shown in 2D or AR technology. The course was introduced to 365 soum schools and kindergartens in 21 provinces. In this way, it will help children to be aware of traffic rules”.
Furthermore, according to the Media and Public Relations Department of the Mayor’s Office, the Capital City Road Development Agency is carrying out partial repair and modernization of roads in 17 locations in Ulaanbaatar City. During this time, gravel, stones and dirt were spilled on the road from vehicles transporting goods that were not sealed. Therefore, the road damage increased, and the risk of traffic accidents is going up as well.
For example, last weekend in Khan-Uul District, the road from the Zaisan intersection of four to the east intersection of “Bugan Khaliun” restaurant was partially closed, repaired and put into use. The reason for the damage of this road was the same as above. The Traffic Police Department is charging drivers who violate the rules of cargo transportation. Article 24 of the Law on Autoroads stipulates that when driving, a driver transporting cargo must carefully check the ropes, fasteners, seals, position and sealing of the cargo, and if the requirements are not fully met, it is prohibited to continue driving. Therefore, all drivers are advised to check their cargo transportation seals and take part in the traffic.
