Urgent need for new road safety strategies

The recent devastating taxi accident in Bluefields, Westmoreland, resulting in five fatalities, has underscored the urgent need for new road safety strategies in the region. The tragedy is a stark reminder of the significant road fatalities occurring, with 488 lives lost last year and 236 road fatalities up to August this year. The impact is especially severe on pedestrians, motorcyclists, and children, posing a major public health threat. The existing strategies, primarily the radar gun and breathalyser, are proving inadequate. Policymakers must urgently devise new, data-driven tools and enhance enforcement through technology like cameras, radars, and drones.

Grief out West!

Jamaica Gleaner/25 Nov 2023

WESTMORELAND HAS been rocked to its core by the horrific taxi wreck in Bluefields last week which claimed five lives. This and other tragic events in the West reminded us that a total of 488 lives were lost last year in various accidents and up to August this year, there were 236 road fatalities. Sadly, death continues to stalk many of the nation’s roadways affecting mostly pedestrians, motorcyclists and children, and creating a major public health menace.

We feel compelled to ask in the names of the maimed and injured victims and grieving families, what are the new strategies that the police and agencies charged with delivery of a comprehensive road safety programme intend to employ as we move into the festive season with its usual highcrash probability?

As far as is discernible, the traffic enforcement arm of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) appears to have two main items in its toolbox, the radar gun and possibly the breathalyser test. The police also refer to their high-visibility patrols as another way of enforcing the road traffic laws.

Are these strategies working? The radar gun which is used to measure the speed of motorists sounds like a reasonable tool, but in Jamaica it does not work as intended. Motorists routinely warn others of the presence of the police so the errant motorist reduces his speed and is never caught going over the prescribed limit. Besides, motorists know the exact check-points where the speed traps are mounted. So two or three policemen are deployed for maybe four hours and they apprehend two or three motorists. Is that really worth valuable police time?

Then there is the breathalyser, a diagnostic device which measures alcohol levels in one’s breath and gives an estimate of how much alcohol is in the blood. Where these devices are used regularly they help to reduce the number of alcohol-impaired drivers who take to the wheels. It was announced in April that more of these instruments were being purchased as part of the government’s strategy to improve road safety.

COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW

Last thing we heard on breathalysers is that government plans a comprehensive review of the use of these devices in order to introduce legislative changes that would make it easy to conduct random tests and not just in the case of an accident as it is now.

Given the above, it is clear that our policymakers need to urgently devise new tools to develop a more robust road safety strategy. As we see it, the first thing that is needed is reliable data. There are usually too many unknown factors when there are road fatalities. For example, were seatbelts or helmets being worn, was the driver distracted such as being on a mobile phone, and details about the condition of the vehicle. Accurate information on the driver, the vehicle and road conditions are valuable in helping to identify accident hot spots and for crafting policies and regulations relating to use of the road.

There has to be effective enforcement. The JCF cannot take the attitude that traffic enforcement should be left to the traffic department. Motorists expect that when there are flagrant breaches on the road, the police will respond. When there is no such response the result can be total menace by motorists.

We acknowledge that the police cannot be everywhere so effective enforcement calls for the use of technology, such as cameras, radars and drones.

It is high time that the government consider the possibility of partnerships with the private sector to introduce some of the high-tech instruments that are being employed around the world to facilitate e-ticketing and other methods of making lawbreakers accountable.

Road accidents put a strain on the health, insurance and legal systems of a country and worse of all, they steal from the most productive segment of the society.

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