By Peng Chien-li
and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff writer
An administrative court has upheld the sentence for a motorcycle rider for risky cornering, saying roads are intended for public use and are not venues for competition or performance. On Oct. 12 last year, the defendant, surnamed Huang (黃), was riding his motorcycle on Provincial Highway No. 3 and took a turn near Miaoli County’s Shihtan Township (獅潭) at about 7:30am when he was stopped by police officers. The police cited Huang for reckless and dangerous driving, and he was fined NT$18,000, had his license suspended for six months and was required to attend a traffic safety course for breaking Item 1, Paragraph 1, Article 43 of the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例).
Motorcycle riders are pictured cornering on Provincial Highway No. 3 near Miaoli County in an undated photograph.
Photo courtesy of a member of the public
Huang appealed the citation with an administrative suit. The presiding judge at the Taichung High Administrative Court, after reviewing the police footage of the incident, said that Huang’s actions, leaning into a turn at a mountain bend, following two other motorcycles, fit the criteria of dangerous and reckless driving.
The highway is for public use and is not a place for performance or antics, nor a racetrack, the ruling said. All drivers should follow traffic laws when driving, as they are obligated to drive safely to prevent any danger, it added. Based on the footage and photos, the judge said it is evident that Huang had not slowed down before entering the turn, ignoring the regulations, adding that leaning into a turn without slowing down risked losing control of the motorcycle and injuring others.