Dear Editor,
Shortly after President Ali declared open the stretch of road linking Mandela Avenue to the East Bank residential areas, a minibus ended up in the parapet. I was intrigued by the comments on the accident on social media, which referred to speeding, dangerous driving and playing loud music by minibus drivers, in particular those which revealed that any passenger that dared to complain about any of this errant behavior would be unceremoniously put out of the bus, regardless of where along the route the bus was. It is unclear to me whether in these situations a refund is given; I would surmise however that it is safe to say that such complaints are rarely forthcoming, particularly during the hours of darkness, and passengers must just grimace and bear it, lest they never make it to their intended destinations that night.
In a situation where public transport has been the monopoly reserve of privately-owned minibuses for decades and in the absence of any initiative whether by the public or private sector, or even a public-private partnership, to introduce regular, scheduled air-conditioned coach services along the major routes, this chaotic situation on our roads is an area crying out for policy intervention. Commuters are at the mercy of these uncouth minibus drivers and it begs the question, can nothing be done to bring a modicum of relief to the hapless
passengers? Turns out there is quite a bit and the law already provides solutions and penalties for this type of unconscionable behavior. Alas, the failing of GT’s finest to enforce the law contributes in large part to the misery that fare-paying passengers have to put up with, although they have an implied contract of carriage with the driver.
The relevant statute is the Motor Vehicle and Road Traffic Offences Act, Cap. 51:02 of the Laws of Guyana (the Act). Although the several amendments to the original 1940 Act make no reference to “minibus” but preserves the term “motor bus” – I have not researched if such a reference is incorporated in any subsidiary legislation – Cap. 51:02 already imposes an obligation in Section 85 on the driver or conductor ‘to carry all persons’, subject to such common sense exceptions as persons who are heavily intoxicated or known to be suffering from communicable diseases. The folly here of course is the systemic failure by the GPF to enforce the law, which has a cascading effect: speeding and reckless/dangerous driving are already offences, as is playing loud music; it does not help if some of the nonsense that passes for music is misogynistic, or uplifts the violation of our sisteren, often in the most profane or vilest manner. So when a passenger objects to this law-breaking on the part of the driver and as a consequence he/she is put out of the bus, yet another offence is committed and a breach of Section 85 of the Act occurs. This would be less of a travesty if an alternative, affordable public transportation service was available.
Thus, in addition to the Police first enforcing the existing law against speeding and playing of loud music, the Act should be amended to reinforce Section 85 as follows: it should be expressly provided that it is an offence for the driver or conductor without reasonable cause to compel a passenger to alight from the motor (mini) bus before they arrive at their destination. A hefty non-custodial penalty ought to bring about the required behavioural change. As that amendment alone will not suffice and in order to facilitate the reporting by a passenger of the inconsiderate driver, the law should also impose a requirement for there to be displayed prominently inside a minibus, the registration number and name of the driver, for example, on the back of the front seat, above the front windscreen, or above the side door. Section 103 of the Act already prescribes the kinds of regulations which the Minister can make, in particular, ‘the particulars to be marked on motor vehicles…’ The expectation would be that the fact alone of abandonment of a passenger on the roadside would be prima facie evidence that the offence has been committed, thereby presumably serving as a strong deterrent.
And in fairness to all parties, it should similarly be made an offence for a passenger to maliciously, capriciously or without just cause, report a driver for such a breach of the law. Going forward, policy makers would do well to set up a Task Force comprised of representatives from the Ministries of Public Works, Home Affairs, Attorney General’s Chambers, Trade, Labour – and maybe Human Services, to provide an additional perspective from the crime prevention standpoint, on how to address the frightening issue of lawless road use, rather than treating the issue strictly from the standpoint of law enforcement. Other stakeholders such as the private sector, the Road Safety Association, the Consumers Association, the Competition and Consumers Affairs Commission and Mothers in Black could be involved. And if the Minibus Association(s) could mobilise their members as and when they see fit to down tools and suspend the transportation service with crippling effect on the economy, then they should be only too willing to partake of any new dispensation which is intended to deliver a safer, more efficient and law-abiding service to the travelling public.
Sincerely,
Neville J. Bissember
