Dear Editor,
Every village in West Coast Berbice has a signboard with the name of the village and the speed limit. On the 12th January 2013, a car killed a horse about five rods from my house. I did not hear any impact, but the next morning, there was a headlight and a red reflector in the road, while the horse had no brand or ear-mark.
The police did not come. The next night, 13th January, right in front of my entrance, a car hit a donkey and killed it. My grandson found a headlight, and again, the donkey had no brand or ear-mark, and again, I never saw any police. My son had to remove the animals.
It would be better if the signboard marked 160 km, which is the speed that some of the big 10-wheel trucks drive at – more than double the limit on the signboard. If these big trucks hit a minibus or car, there would at the very least be serious injuries. This is not forgetting the sugar transporters − they are the same − and the cars, while the speeding minibuses are the worst.
Some people have suggested that the government should put bumps across roads where vehicles are going with such speed; they are not late for the ferry, because we have the Berbice River bridge now. The traffic policemen are doing good work, but many drivers signal each other when police are on the road.
The animals on the road are causing serious accidents and damage to vehicles, and they have no brands. Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee must not make regulations which he can’t enforce; let him put his community policing group officers to impound animals on the road; they are causing accidents in West Berbice.
Yours faithfully,
Rudolph Singh
