Dear Editor,
The Minister of Home Affairs is reported as observing that the recent spate of road fatalities calls for renewed interventions such as:
i. A heightened enforcement and increasing fines and sanctions;
ii. Renewed interventions for public awareness in respect of road safety and traffic management
Most citizens will welcome these promised ‘interventions’, old and repeated as they are, and without any implementation of a well formulated traffic safety plan – more urgently necessary in the face of the steadily increasing numbers of vehicles (and new drivers) on more crowded roads.
One hopes that the Hon. Minister will follow through as a matter of urgency with the reconstruction of suitably representative Road Safety Authority that would include amongst others, the following interest groups, in addition to the Traffic Chief:
– Owners of large/overweight transport vehicles
– Bus operators
– Taxi owners
– Insurance Companies
– Licensing Authority
– Bar Association
– Medical Council
and other identifiable interest groups – say Vehicle Sales and Repair Agencies. But please, the focus cannot be limited to ‘fatalities’. There must also be concerns for those survivors impaired for life and possibly unable to return to working condition (should the NIS have a say also?)
The Minister’s priority ‘intervention’ must of course be ‘prevention’. In this connection, there is need to conduct a comprehensive analysis of accidents including over comparable periods of day and night, respectively. This exercise would require the design of an appropriately detailed report form, so that the spate of accidents can be
consistently reviewed, in relation to a number of contributory factors – not limited to: place, time, lighting, weather conditions; road signage (lack of); speed limit; pedestrian crossings; sidewalks; particulars of drivers/victims licensing; visible vehicle defects. There are many more features which the Road Safety Authority could add.
It may not be totally irrelevant to consider the effects of climate change and unpredictable weather patterns. Incidentally, are applicant drivers still trained before being licensed? What is the process for licensing new foreign drivers? In the meantime, it can easily be verified that current signage is not only too small but also hardly visible from certain distances. The Authority could seek advice on the more appropriate colours (and sizes) that can be utilised in different circumstances. When the debate is all over, they should produce a driver’s code for issue to all licensed drivers. Comparable procedures in sister CARICOM countries may add some value to the proposed ‘interventions’.
Sincerely,
E.B. John
