Garth Rattray IN SPITE of the very unfortunate traffic fatalities over the holiday season, traffic deaths were down compared to the same period last year. This is in no small measure due to the vigilance of the traffic police who blanketed the roads especially during the latter part of December 2004. They made their
presence felt with numerous speed traps, checkpoints and patrols.
The fact that accidents were down last year is commendable especially when I recall imbeciles like the madman behind the wheel of a Toyota Coaster bus who, in his frenzied impatience to pass, squeezed between two moving vehicles on the Mandela Highway and sped off in a cloud of black diesel smoke only to stop mere metres away to pick up passengers.
DAREDEVIL DRIVING
I saw many instances of daredevil driving over the holidays; each and every one could have caused catastrophic crashes. It is common to see overloaded taxicabs and Coaster buses speeding and a wide assortment of crazy
ignoramuses swerving from lane to lane barely missing innocent drivers. I could write an entire book of anecdotes describing the
ridiculous way that many Jamaicans drive. In over 30 years of driving, I have never before seen such utter disregard for the laws of the land, selfishness, aggression, impatience and such lunatic abandonment of common sense on the roads.
There were several well-written pieces in the Sunday Gleaner and Sunday Observer of January 2, 2005 highlighting excessive
speeding and the illegal (corrupt) activities that allow morons to operate potentially lethal
vehicles. This brings me to the observation that the number of new drivers far exceeds the number of learner drivers on our roads. It is also crystal clear that far too many drivers know little or nothing about the Road Code. Sure, we could inundate the highways and byways with speed traps and increase the police presence but they can't be everywhere all the time. I have always held the view expressed by Mr. Ainsley Morrison, writing to the Sunday Observer out of London, "If the driver of the vehicle you are in is
driving in a way that makes you uncomfortable, tell him/her to stop and let you out."
Public and private passengers must exert their right to safe transport and take personal responsibility for their own lives. Many road fatalities involve vehicles with multiple
passengers. I always find it bewildering that grown adults could passively sit in a bus or car (private or public) and allow reckless drivers to bring about their demise. Someone remarked (on television) that the driver of the ill-fated route taxi in which six people died in the Bog Walk gorge was renowned for driving at or over 100 km/hr on that narrow road yet his car was overloaded with willing passengers. If even one passenger had insisted that he slowed down, they would all be alive today.
But most passengers relish the fast and
reckless driving practised by some route taxis and buses because they get where they are going in record time. They like it when drivers flout the law supposedly on their behalf and they encourage such behaviour by consistently patronising dangerous drivers and remaining silent in the face of speeding and improper
overtaking. Everyone should be somewhat familiar with the road codes. They should be taught in schools and systematically released in the print and electronic media. We must squash the buying and selling of road licences by carrying out widespread sting operations.
ENCOURAGING LITERACY
We must ensure that current drivers are
literate and educated regarding the Road Code by having them fill out a short questionnaire under supervision before renewing their
driver's licences. This should apply especially to operators of commercial and private
passenger vehicles. We can catch taxi and bus drivers breaking the law simply by putting undercover cops on public transport vehicles as passengers. Ninety per cent of motor vehicle accidents are preventable. I see no reason why measures of the kind mentioned above cannot be instituted. If we are to effectively reduce the number of road tragedies we must take a more proactive stance.
Dr Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice.
