By Kadeem Joseph
Traffic police are welcoming suggestions for greater collaboration between interest groups in an effort to improve safety on the roads.
Calls for increased efforts to make the nation’s roadways safer for all were reignited after a collision on Sunday morning landed four cyclists in hospital.
Among them was national cyclist Andre Simon, who remains in the Intensive Care Unit at the Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre, but is said to be improving, while the other three, Tiziano Rosignoli, Ghere Coates, and Sean Weathered, have since been discharged.
President of the Cycling Association St Clair Williams said the body has been working with the Traffic Department for some time and is looking forward to forging closer ties.
He said that the association has also collaborated with the drag racing fraternity in order to utilise their facility to race and train away from the country’s primary roadways.
“I guess going forward we can continue to have that talk and continue to push for road safety in Antigua and Barbuda,” Williams said.
Board member and PRO of the Drag Racing Association, Renee Ambrose, also spoke to the value of such partnerships.
“I think that it is very important that the Drag Racing Association and other persons and road users or associations that have some form of input as to the legalities that govern how the roads are being used, collaborate on ways and means of educating the public with regards to road safety,” she said.
Traffic Officer, Senior Sergeant Kenny Mcburnie, who was a guest on the Observer AM programme yesterday along with Ambrose and Williams, said the assistance from the two groups and others is welcomed as it will supplement the work that is being done by the department.
He explained that with the ever-increasing volume of vehicles on the roadways, the greater the need for education surrounding road safety.
“We try our best from the Traffic Department but we alone cannot do it … we need the assistance of the various stakeholders just so that we can reach the various corners of Antigua and Barbuda,” he added.
Meanwhile, the male driver who was behind the wheel of the car that reportedly struck the riders is assisting police with their investigations.
Police are yet to announce if charges will be levelled against the driver, or release his identity.