JonesTHE POLICE Traffic Ticketing System, instituted three years ago, has failed to help bring delinquent motorists to book, according to Dr. Lucien Jones, vice-president of the National Road Safety Council (NRSC).
"The system has to do with two things ... the police?s ability to liaise with the courts and with the place (Inland Revenue Depart-ment) where you pay your fine," Dr. Jones told The Gleaner Thursday. ?The connectivity that was promised is just not there."
Dr. Jones said many motorists who are issued tickets give wrong addresses, which further complicates matters.
Major problem
"When the police go for them, they can't find them and that's a major problem," Dr. Jones said. "We at the NRSC are not clear or happy with what our understanding of what the corrective measures are."
The ticket system?s multifaceted features were hailed when it was launched on April 1, 2004. Tickets were entered into a database three days after being issued, and motorists accumulating 10 or more points stood to have their licence suspended.
Delinquents would be unable to license their motor vehicles at the Inland Revenue Department if their records were not clean. The records also helped the police to identify licensed firearm holders and persons with criminal records.
On Thursday, the NRSC released statistics showing a slight decline in road fatalities when compared to the first three months of last year.
To date, 63 persons have died in 61 fatal motor vehicle accidents. During the same period last year, there were 70 deaths from 64 fatal accidents; 293 road deaths were recorded in Jamaica last year.
