Since the beginning of 2026, 21,500 people in Kazakhstan have been stripped of their driving licences for driving while intoxicated and driving into the oncoming lane. At the same time, road monitoring has been expanded with cameras, mobile units and around 300 drones, which record violations without stopping vehicles.
HOW MANY DRIVERS HAVE BEEN STRIPPED OF THEIR LICENCES
Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Igor Lepekha has said that since the beginning of 2026, 21,500 people have been stripped of their driving licences for driving while intoxicated and driving into the oncoming lane. Of these, more than 17,000 people were held liable specifically for driving while under the influence of alcohol.
In addition, for various administrative offences, including drink-driving and the use of false number plates, more than 18,300 citizens were subjected to administrative arrest.
HOW THE SITUATION ON THE ROADS IS MONITORED
Cameras, mobile units and unmanned aerial vehicles are used to record violations on Kazakhstan's highways. KazAvtoZhol National Company JSC is installing road situation monitoring cameras at intervals of around one kilometre.
In addition, around 500 mobile units are operating on the roads, recording speeding and other traffic offences without stopping the vehicle. Around 300 drones are used to identify dangerous manoeuvres, including driving into the oncoming lane and cutting in.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 67% of administrative traffic offences are now recorded by technical means. In some regions this figure exceeds 70%. The ministry notes that when such systems are used, the main emphasis is on preventing violations.
WHAT SHARING COMPANIES ARE BEING HELD LIABLE FOR
Monitoring of the use of electric scooters has also been stepped up. Scooters left in unauthorised places are towed away for violating improvement rules. Around 9,500 scooters are being held at impound lots, and 5,000 owners have been held liable.
In addition, sharing companies have begun to be held liable. They are obliged to keep records of scooters and ensure their identification by means of registration numbers. 11 administrative reports have already been drawn up for violations.
HOW THE PROCEDURE FOR OPENING DRIVING SCHOOLS WILL CHANGE
In order to improve the quality of driver training, the Ministry of Internal Affairs plans to move to a permit-based procedure for opening driving schools. When issuing a permit, the compliance of instructors with established requirements and the availability of a training base and vehicles will be checked.
As part of this work, an automated system for recording driving school students has already been introduced, self-training has been abolished and paper certificates of course completion have been eliminated.
CONTEXT
Earlier, Igor Lepekha commented that the dismissal of two female tourist police officers after a viral video with an Egyptian blogger was linked to a breach of professional ethics. According to him, the disciplinary commission considered their behaviour unacceptable for officers who were on duty and in uniform.