Dear Editor,
Over the years and during my membership of the Consumer Movement of Guyana (GMOG) I have written a number of articles on the deteriorating road transportation environment and made oral and other submissions to the powers that be.
A few days ago I happened to glance at a discarded Stabroek News headline and discerned the word carnage. On examining the paper closer (13th October 2006) it read “Police announce rack of measures to curb road carnage”. The article stated- “With the road death figure at 109 so far this year (2006) and calls from all sectors of society for more care among road users particularly those in the public transport system the Police Traffic Department has announced a rack of measures aimed at curbing the carnage on the roads.” The article went on to state that there were 141 deaths for the corresponding period up to 13th October last year 2005.
One year and almost two weeks later on 25th October 2007 the Stabroek News headlines stated “Time for action – Green, new traffic fines from November 1, 2007.” This ‘Time for Acton’ came after there were 177 road fatalities which figure was reached sometime between 13th and 22nd October 2007. Since the mean between 109 fatalities by October 2006 and 141 fatalities in 2005 is 125 what was the number of fatalities which was sardonically considered by the authorities as an acceptable level of road carnage up to the corresponding period in the year 2007? Was it 177, that is 52 fatalities more than the average of 125 in the preceding two years up to 2006 and 2005? And where does the buck stop, when did the alarm bells start to ring and who is responsible for this gross dereliction of much earlier concern?
How many years have the Women in Black preceded by the ‘Alicia Foundation’ been demonstrating and protesting about this ongoing carnage and advocating a review and updating of the rules of the road and the upward revision in the quantum of fines and penalties – to no avail – over ten years.
Mr Editor, Dr Ian Mc Donald in his column in Sunday Stabroek of October 14, 2007 wrote on the subject of semi-literacy which holds us back and related it to logic and the solving of problems and discussing the nation’s affairs. The present carnage on the road to my thinking is the nation’s affair and logic is very relevant. Therefore I am at my wit’s end to understand why the Police Traffic Department and/or its Ministry has never sensitized the public at large through the print media or otherwise to the ensuing fatalities on our roads on a fortnightly or monthly basis by means of a pictograph. Is it that the Memoriam to the great educator F.E.W. Case as published in Stabroek News 05.05.07 which stated it all – to wit – “poor performing institutions like individuals share two intriguing characteristics both of which act as blocks against achievement or simply getting the job done? The first of these is a denial mode where it is pretended that what is, is not, and can never be. Inevitably, denial mode resists any frank evaluation of problems, and any moves towards strategic change. The second characteristic is a tendency to avoid change which can paralyze institutions by throwing them into near permanent coma. Resistance to change comes from an inability to look ahead and the fear of discovery.’
In all of the writings I have read since October 25, 2007 when the ‘Time for action’ was determined by the Commissioner of Police, I have not seen any involvement of the Central Transport Planning Unit (CTPU) if is still exists and is functioning.
Is there now ‘gridlock’ at peak travel times on our major highways and roads that causes drivers to drive at breakneck speed levels and where minibuses deviate from routes to avoid traffic lights thereby resulting in increased traffic on secondary roads which are narrower? Were one to address the minibus presence and nuisance it would be very revealing. With approximately 670 buses operating the Georgetown City routes 40, 41, 42, and 45 and using a multiplying factor of 8 (return trips per day) it would mean a total of almost 5000 vehicles per day on our minimal road system. That figure does not take into account the routes 44, 50, 43, 21, 31 buses which total figure is unavailable, and it increases the figure of 5000 – in addition to other forms of transportation. The result is cause for concern mainly due to the number of On-Request stops for disembarking and embarking passengers from mini-buses. Just think what this does to other traffic on our roads. I am sure that statistics would show that minibuses in the majority are involved in MCA (multiple casuality accidents) where their structural integrity leaves much to be desired when subjected to major impact forces and a concertina effect results in crushing its occupants. There are no escape windows and only one door for entrance and exit. Given the fact that there is no limit to the amount of minibuses which could be added daily to the present overall fleet in a ‘get rich quick syndrome’ the law of diminishing returns has crept into the operating cost including wages, maintenance and profitability. There lies the reason for cutting corners and breaking road laws.
Is it not therefore time for larger passenger-friendly commuter buses running to a schedule and stopping only at compulsory designated and delineated stops to be actively considered? By passenger-friendly I mean aisles along the length of the bus, proper seat pitch with torso fitting seats, proper emergency marked exits, and standing room.
Mr Editor, children and others continue to be killed while using pedestrian crossings and I have written ad nauseam that these pedestrian crossings have to be marked with proper road marking material. Where these crossings are not collocated with traffic lights, there must be vertically glow painted signs warning motorists that the crossings are ahead at so many feet or yards.
I recommended over 27 years ago to VP Mr Steve Narain about the need to have a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to set standards for the three (3) Modes of Transportation in Guyana. This could be achieved under the umbrella of Caricom. The authorities continue to use inferior paint to mark pedestrian crossings. A perfect example of this decadence is the crossing North of the Georgetown Magistrate Court at Croal and High Streets, where the road markings in the immediate vicinity, which were done about six months ago, have all but disappeared. This situation exists in the vicinity of Parliament Buildings – a main tourist attraction in Georgetown. Who benefits from the continued repainting of these signs with inferior paint every 4 to 6 months and especially when there is an international forum to be held in the capital? Why should it take the initiative of a former student of F.E. Pollard Primary School to donate the proper road marking paint for use in Guyana which paint would last for ten years or more when it should be a matter of standard application?
Furthermore Mr Editor, after the accident at Amelia’s Ward on the 10th October, 2007 when 10 people were killed in a minibus crash and in similar circumstances to that accident which occurred on the 4th May 2007 when two Digicel contracted employees were killed, I have not heard of the reason why the Traffic Officers at Linden did not recognize the potential hazard presented by the broken down bush truck and have the area marked off with day-night painted cone markers and monitored by a Traffic Rank until the hazard no longer existed.
Further are we looking at the impact of increased traffic on our minimal road system when the Takutu Bridge from Brazil is commissioned for use? I have previously written about the need to build an alternative road to Timehri. I repeat the quote “Resistance to change comes from an inability to look ahead and the fear of discovery”. Mere posturing does very little in the end, as the problems remain to haunt us. Zero tolerance can only bear fruit if we have policemen like those decades ago, who took pride in their job
and would remove the valve-stem from the bicycle of a cyclist whom he finds riding without a light at night or against a one-way street.
Finally, Mr Editor, a large number of us have come through the cracks and crevices of the education system between Common Entrance and the CXC Examinations and have gained employment in many of the regulatory and disciplined forces. The completion of the Annual Confidential Report (ACR) is no longer a feature for the award of increments or promotion within the Public Service and a large number of staff are catapulted upward into positions of influence, decision making and power, due to migration. It is now clear that they do not have the experience, the knowledge, the ability and the vision to discharge their onerous responsibilities.
Yours faithfully,
Aubrey Alexander
