Road Traffic Law and Statutory Duties
This domain tests the statutory layer around bus operation: the Road Traffic Act (道路交通法), the Road Transport Act (道路運送法), and the driver’s personal duties. Questions usually ask who must act, in what order, and whether a route permit or vehicle category changes the answer.
Core statutory duties
- 安全運転の義務 (Road Traffic Act Art. 70): drive at a safe speed and in a safe manner. This general duty applies even when no specific rule is broken.
- 救護義務 and 事故報告義務 (Art. 72): after a traffic accident, stop immediately, rescue injured persons, prevent further danger, and report to police. A bus driver must also notify the operator and 運行管理者.
- Fitness and alcohol: 酒気帯び運転 and 過労運転 are prohibited. Operators enforce a zero-alcohol standard at 点呼; the statutory 酒気帯び threshold is 0.15 mg/L breath, but “below the threshold” is not a defence for a professional driver.
- Capacity and licensing: 定員超過 is prohibited. Standing passengers are allowed only where the vehicle and route authorization permit it. Passenger-carrying service requires a Class 2 licence (大型二種 or 中型二種).
Worked example
A route bus is struck from behind while stopped. Two passengers report neck pain. The driver stops, secures the scene, checks injuries, calls 110 and 119, and reports to the depot. Reasoning: injury triggers Art. 72 rescue and police-report duties immediately; the operator report is a separate duty. Moving the bus to clear traffic is allowed only after rescue and reporting, and only if safe.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating a police report as optional for a “minor” collision.
- Confusing the police report with the operator/transport-bureau report.
- Assuming a route permit automatically authorizes standing passengers or extra capacity.
- Forgetting that the general safe-driving duty can be breached even without a specific offence.