Police aim to reduce road fatalities in 2018

The police force will be introducing night patrols in 2018 in hopes of helping to curb the number of road fatalities the country records.
In 2017, there were 2,133 accidents on record, with 11 road deaths for that year, four of which occurred on All Saints Road.
The confirmation came from the head of the traffic department, Inspector Elson Quammie, who also gave road death statistics for the period 2011 to 2017. During that time there were 57 road fatalities altogether: eleven on All Saints Road; six on Jonas Road; five on Valley Road; four on Sir George Walter Highway; and another four on Sir Sydney Walling Highway.
The other recorded deaths occurred throughout the island. Quammie said, “Most of these accidents happen after midnight” with “speeding contributing to most” of them. Referencing the night patrol plan, the inspector said, “We wouldn’t give you the opportunity to exceed the speed limits and eventually result in road fatality.”
He also debunked the belief that many accidents are associated with fetes. “It’s not a trend to say after a big fete you have these (road fatalities); they just happen,” he said. He is, however, calling on the business community to help remedy the situation by sponsoring billboards, which would be placed on the roadways with the highest amount of accidents. The inspector believes the messages on these billboards will remind drivers to not only slow down but to also remember road safety rules. Inspector Quammie was speaking on OBSERVER’s Insurance Assurance programme on Thursday night.
He said one of the problems the police have been facing is the high amount of accidents that are recorded at gas stations. The lawman attributed this occurrence to the high number of exits that some service stations have. Inspector Quammie said in 2018 the traffic department will be asking service stations to have properly marked entrances and exits to avoid further confusion.
The inspector also lamented the high volume of traffic on the road, saying that he believes the traffic department is working “miracles”.
He said that the country imports about 300 cars per month and encourages drivers to “use side roads” to help alleviate congestion.