#BTEditorial – Time Government acts on pirate PSVs

There can be no disagreement that the privately-run Public Service Vehicles industry has been at the brunt of harsh but often warranted criticism over the years.

Sadly, the bad element that continues to flout the laws, engage in reckless driving and perpetuate unruly behaviour, has managed to daub the entire industry with the same dirty brush.

The number of cases daily for which drivers and conductors face the traffic courts does not help the negative perception either.

That said, whatever we think about the rogues, there are others who ply an honest living, ferrying commuters to and from their destinations. The industry is made up of many working-class citizens who depend on daily earnings to provide for their families.

For the most part, thousands of Barbadians are transported safely daily. The fact that the PSVs ply many routes that are not covered by the Transport Board cement their importance to the average Bajan and the economy as a whole.

So, when we reported, yet again, that PSV operators were pleading with Government to help weed out and stamp out pirate vehicles, we are inclined to add our voice to their pleas.

As with other businesses, the pandemic has dealt a brutal blow to PSVs. The Alliance Owners of Public Transport (AOPT) has reported an estimated $40 million loss to the industry.

The losses obviously stem from the lockdown periods, limited capacity and absence of physical school. Compounding this issue is the fact that pirate vehicles have now cut into whatever profits are left at this time.

Apart from the issue of pirates, APTO had been pleading for an ease since the implementation of the fuel tax. To the best of our knowledge,  none has been forthcoming to date.

In August, APTO spokesman Mark Haynes said the alliance had formally approached the Minister of Energy, Small Business and Entrepreneurship demanding either the removal of the Value Added Tax (VAT), excise tax or the reduction of both.

Haynes said: “This is a vexing situation which continues to permeate Barbados. It continues to affect all of these gentlemen who do not make a lot of money on a daily basis. These prices are really astronomical and it cannot continue. It keeps on going up. It is putting pressure on this fraternity as well as our ZR fraternity and, by extension, Barbadians. Everybody is feeling it at the pump. So it is hard on these guys and we hope that the Government will be amenable to reducing taxes on gasoline.”

As it relates to pirates, the association has pleaded with authorities to deal with pirates in the past but these calls have become more frequent in this period of financial loss.

Twice in two months, calls have been made for the menacing issue to be dealt with.

On September 6, APTO chairman Roy Raphael urged a crackdown on those who operate pirate vehicles which, he said, had saturated many bus routes.

He explained: “Because of the 25 per cent capacity that is left behind, some persons are now capitalising on it . . . creating a whole host of issues that have now caused pirates to be out in their numbers.”

Just over a month later, the head of the Complaints and Legal Affairs Division, Craig Banfield, expressed the hope that the authorities and the general insurance industry move speedily to put the brakes on the pirate vehicles.

He said: “This pirating issue has really escalated since the COVID-19 has come about. What has happened is a lot of persons have lost work or a lot of persons who are not getting the amount of work that they were getting before, whether they were driving a ZM [maxi-taxi] or Z [taxi] permit for example. As such, they have looked at picking up passengers at bus stops to subsidise their income.

“They [pirates] are paying regular insurance fees, a little $500, $1 000, while our guys are paying $15,000 and $20,000. So, you can see where a lot of frustration can come about. It is not fair that this matter is causing this on the road along with all the other issues we already are facing in Barbados.”

Banfield, an attorney-at-law, warned of potential physical confrontation between the legal and illegal operators based on regular complaints and videos received.

We cannot allow the issue to fester and reach that stage.

We understand that these are trying times for everyone but we cannot condone or allow laws to be broken at will. If the ZM and Z operators want to operate as PSVs they must go the legal route.

They must pay the taxes, insurance and apply for the relevant permits. It is not fair to the PSV operators, especially at a time like this.

APTO’s Raphael said the group is about to have discussions with a team of lawyers with a view to taking the Government to court to test the matter of the pirates.

We don’t believe it should come to that. We are hopeful that Government would work in the interest of the vital transit industry and make wrong things right.

And while Director of the Barbados Transport Authority Ruth Holder says the problem of the illegal transport operators is being addressed, it must be treated with a matter of urgency.

The Transport Authority must move with haste from the position “being addressed” to “fixed”, for the good of an industry and a nation on the move.