①The driver of a vehicle or streetcar (other than a light road vehicle that is not a bicycle; the same applies hereinafter in this Article) must sound the horn:

②The driver of a vehicle or streetcar must not sound the horn unless required to do so pursuant to laws and regulations; provided, however, that this does not apply if sounding the horn is necessary in order to prevent a hazard.

①The driver of a vehicle must not drive while allowing a passenger to ride in a place not meant to carry a passenger, and must not drive while carrying a load in a place not meant to carry a passenger or a load; provided, however, that, in a motor vehicle built exclusively to transport cargo (hereinafter referred to in the following Article and Article 57 as a "truck") which is carrying cargo, the driver may drive while allowing the minimum number of personnel necessary to guard the cargo to ride on the loading platform.

②The driver of a vehicle must not drive while allowing a person to ride or carrying a load in a way that could obstruct the driver's field of vision, the steering wheel, or the operation of other instruments, or diminish the effectiveness of the rearview mirrors, harm the stability of the vehicle, or obscure the vehicle's turn signals, license plates, brake lights, taillights, or rear reflectors when viewed from the outside of the vehicle.

③The passenger of a vehicle must not ride in or on a vehicle in a way that causes the driver to violate the preceding two paragraphs.

①Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of the preceding Article, if the chief of the police station having jurisdiction over the place of departure of a vehicle (hereinafter referred to through Article 58 as "police chief of the place of departure") grants permission for a specific place in which a load may be carried, having found that there is nothing to prevent this in terms of the structure of a vehicle or road or traffic conditions, the driver may drive that vehicle while carrying a load in a specific place other than one that is meant to carry a passenger or a load.

②Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of the preceding Article, if the police chief of the place of departure grants permission for a limited number of personnel to be carried, having found that there is nothing to prevent this in terms of the structure of a truck or the road or traffic conditions, the driver of the truck may drive while carrying a number of personnel on its loading platform that falls within the scope of that permission.

①The driver of a vehicle (other than a light road vehicle; the same applies hereinafter in this paragraph and in Articles 58-2 through 58-5) must not drive a vehicle while carrying a number of personnel or a load that exceeds the restrictions on the number of accompanying personnel or the weight, size, and way of carrying cargo (hereinafter referred to in this Article as "weight, size, and way of carrying cargo") that Cabinet Order prescribes for that vehicle; provided, however, that a driver may drive a vehicle while carrying a number of personnel exceeding those restrictions if they are carried on the loading platform of a truck pursuant to the proviso to Article 55, paragraph (1) or after obtaining permission pursuant to paragraph (2) of the preceding Article.

②On finding it to be necessary to do so in order to prevent a road hazard or otherwise ensure traffic safety, a public safety commission may prescribe restrictions on the number of accompanying personnel or the weight, size, and way of carrying cargo for light road vehicles.

③Notwithstanding the preceding two paragraphs, if cargo cannot be divided and for this reason exceeds the restrictions on the weight, size, and way of carrying cargo that Cabinet Order prescribes which are referred to in paragraph (1) or exceeds the restrictions on this that are prescribed by the public safety commission pursuant to the preceding paragraph, and the police chief of the place of departure grants permission for a limited weight, size, and way of carrying cargo, having found that there is nothing to prevent this in terms of the structure of the vehicle or the road or traffic conditions, the driver of the vehicle may drive that vehicle while carrying a load in excess of the restrictions, within the scope of the weight, size, and way of carrying cargo in the permission.

①Having granted permission pursuant to Article 56 or paragraph (3) of the preceding Article (hereinafter referred to in this Article as "permission to exceed restrictions"), the police chief of the place of departure must issue a permit.

②A driver of a vehicle issued a permit pursuant to the preceding paragraph must carry the permit at all times while driving the vehicle for which the permission has been given.

③On finding that it is necessary to do so when granting permission to exceed restrictions, the chief of police of the place of departure may attach conditions to that permission as necessary to prevent hazards, pursuant to Cabinet Order.

④Cabinet Office Order provides for the format of permits as referred to in paragraph (1) and the necessary particulars concerning procedures for permission to exceed restrictions.

When a vehicle is being driven that could be found to exceed the weight restrictions on loads prescribed in Article 57, paragraph (1), a police officer may stop it, require the driver to present a motor vehicle inspection certificate (meaning a motor vehicle inspection certificate as referred to in Article 60 of the Act on Vehicles for Road Transportation; the same applies in Article 63, paragraph (1)) and other documents that Cabinet Order prescribes, and measure the weight of the vehicle's load.

①A police officer may order the driver of a vehicle carrying an excessive load (meaning a load carried by a vehicle which exceeds the weight prescribed in Article 57, paragraph (1) (or that exceeds the permitted weight, if the permission under paragraph (3) of that Article has been granted); the same applies hereinafter) to take the necessary stop-gap measures so that the vehicle is no longer carrying an excessive load.

②Notwithstanding Article 57, paragraph (1), if it is found that an order under the preceding paragraph is insufficient to stop a vehicle from carrying an excessive load, and if a police officer finds that, in light of the degree to which the vehicle is overloaded and road or traffic conditions, there is nothing to prevent the driver from driving the vehicle while abiding by the instructions that the officer gives, the officer may order the driver of the vehicle to drive in compliance with measures that need to be taken in order to prevent hazards on a section of road for vehicle traffic, route, or road, to abide by other instructions that the police officer gives, and to take other necessary measures so that the vehicle is no longer carrying an excessive load. In such a case, the police officer must issue written road use instructions to the driver of the vehicle.

③A driver of a vehicle who has been issued written road use instructions pursuant to the preceding paragraph must carry the instructions at all times while driving the vehicle based on an order under that paragraph.

④Cabinet Office Order provides for the format of, and other necessary particulars concerning, the written road use instructions referred to in paragraph (2).

When an order under paragraph (1) or (2) of the preceding Article is issued, if the user of the vehicle subject to the order (other than the selfsame driver of the vehicle; the same applies hereinafter in this Article) is found not to be undertaking the necessary operational management to prevent drivers from carrying excessive loads in that vehicle, the public safety commission with jurisdiction over the vehicle's base of operations may instruct the user to direct or advise drivers to check the weight of the load before allowing them to drive its vehicles, and may instruct the user to take other necessary measures to prevent its vehicles from carrying excessive loads.

①It is prohibited for a person other than a user or an owner as prescribed in Article 75, paragraph (1) to do the following:

②If a person violates the preceding paragraph and the chief of the police station finds that the violator is likely to violate that paragraph again, the chief may order the violator not to violate that paragraph, pursuant to Cabinet Office Order.

①The driver of a motor vehicle must not tow another vehicle unless the motor vehicle doing the towing has the structure and equipment necessary for towing and the towed vehicle has the structure and equipment necessary for being towed; provided, however, that this does not apply to the towing of a motor vehicle pursuant to Cabinet Order when a malfunction or other such circumstance compels this.

②When towing another vehicle with a standard motorcycle, large motorcycle, or special small motor vehicle, the driver of that motor vehicle must not tow more than one other vehicle, and when towing another vehicle with any other type of motor vehicle, the driver of that motor vehicle must not tow more than two other vehicles; the driver of a motor vehicle must not tow another vehicle if the length from the front end of the towing motor vehicle to the rear end of the towed vehicle (or to the rear end of the second towed vehicle, if towing two vehicles) would exceed 25 meters; provided, however, that this does not apply if the public safety commission grants permission for the motor vehicle to do so, specifying the road or limiting the timeframe for towing.

③When the public safety commission grants permission pursuant to the proviso of the preceding paragraph, it must issue a permit.

④The driver of a motor vehicle issued a permit pursuant to the preceding paragraph must carry the permit at all times while undertaking the permitted towing.

⑤Cabinet Office Order provides for the format of permits as referred to in paragraph (3) and other necessary particulars concerning the procedures for the permission prescribed in the proviso to paragraph (2).

On finding it to be necessary to do so in order to prevent road hazards and otherwise ensure traffic safety, a public safety commission may establish restrictions on towing by vehicles other than motor vehicles.

Beyond as provided for in Article 58-3, paragraphs (1) and (2), a police officer may order the driver of a vehicle or streetcar to stop and take the necessary stop-gap measures to prevent a hazard in connection with the vehicle's or streetcar's carrying of passengers, carrying of loads, or towing of vehicles, on finding it to be particularly necessary to do so in order to prevent that hazard.