Rasbert Turner, Gleaner Writer
THE ST. CATHERINE North Police is warning that it will be cracking down on unlicensed public passenger minibus operators transporting children to schools in Spanish Town.
According to Sub-Officer in charge of Traffic, Inspector Patrick Murdock, a significant number of these operators do not have the required licenses to transport students.
"It is not something that the traffic section will tolerate. We are definitely going after these vehicles," Inspector Murdock told The Gleaner yesterday.
SEIZURE
He said where the vehicles are found to be operating in contravention of the Road Traffic Act, they will be seized until the matter is dealt with in court or until the operators make arrangements to regularise their functions.
Inspector Murdock said it is critical that the operators of these vehicles be licensed for such functions because in the event of an accident, those being transported will not be compensated by insurance companies.
Inspector Murdock is also reporting that many of the small bus operators have increased their seating capacities without adjusting of the documentation for vehicles.
In the meantime, he is suggesting that the increase in the number of vehicles being contracted to transport school children may be the result of what he calls harsher economic conditions.
