Fri | Jun 19, 2026

'Speed on the track'

Published:Friday | May 6, 2011 | 12:00 AM
Pause
Bruce James (left), president of the MVP Track Club, chats with Dr Lucien Jones, vice-chairman of the National Road Safety Council.
The Kingston College Choir provided two rousing pieces for the event. - Photos by Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer
Track star Asafa Powell (seated, centre) adds his signature to the Decade of Action for Global Road Safety. Looking on are David Ward (seated, left) of the Federation International de l'Automobile Foundation; Earl Jarrett, chairman of the Jamaica Automobile Association (JAA); and (standing, from left) Assistant Commissioner of Police Ray Palmer; Duane Ellis, general manager of the JAA; Paula Fletcher, executive director of the National Road Safety Council (NRSC) and Dr Lucien Jones, vice-chairman of the NRSC.
Asafa Powell (centre) shows off the Decade of Action for Road Safety pendant with (from left) Duane Ellis, David Ward, Dr Lucien Jones and Earl Jarrett.
David Ward (second right) director general of the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile Foundation, has the attention of (from left) Assistant Commissioner of Police Ray Palmer; Earl Jarrett, chair of the Jamaica Automobile Association, and Kent LaCroix of Stewart's Auto Sales.
Lascelles' Kaysia Johnson (left) chats with Simone Chambers of Jamaica National Building Society. - Photos by Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer
Leon Mitchell (left), Jamaica National Building Society executive, shares lens time with track star Asafa Powell as the sportsman endorsed the Decade of Action for Global Road Safety by Asafa Powell, held at Central Avenue, Swallowfield, on Wednesday...
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
  • Asafa signs United Nations Decade of Action for Global Road Safety declaration

Daviot Kelly, Staff Reporter

It may seem ironic that one of the world's fastest men is actually telling people to slow down.

Asafa Powell's exact words were "just take care on our streets", which he said just before he signed the United Nations Decade of Action for Global Road Safety declaration on Wednesday at the Jamaica Automobile Association (JAA) headquarters. Powell is the latest Jamaican celebrity to add his signature to the declaration, as race-car driver David Summerbell Jr had earlier done so. Powell, not one for long speeches, encouraged every one to "go fast on the track" and expressed hope he would be a motivator to people to do that.

Among the dignitaries to witness the occasion was David Ward, director general of the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA is the world body governing motor sport and motoring organisations. Ward survived a road accident in his teens; his seatbelt saved his life. He admitted it wasn't until he started working with the FIA that he realised it could all have never happened had he not taken precautions.

The signing was part of a week of activities organised by The National Road Safety Council, the JAA, the University of the West Indies and the Pan American Health Organisation. Despite the sight of such vehicles as Summerbell's Mitsubishi Evolution, there was no ambiguity as to the message of the event. According to the United Nations, more than a million people die every year worldwide in road-traffic crashes, a greater death toll than that caused by malaria.

As Duane Ellis, general manager of the JAA, said, "The campaign to make our roads safe has just begun."