President of the Barbados Road Safety Association (BRSA) Sharmane Roland-Bowen and Chairman of the Alliance Owners of Public Transport (AOPT) Roy Raphael are calling on Government to tell Barbadians the real reason breathalyser testing has been put on hold, instead of using the need to equip taxis with metering systems as an ‘excuse’.
Appealing to Attorney General Dale Marshall and his Cabinet colleagues to revisit the decision, Roland-Bowen said the excuse given for delaying the introduction of breathalyser testing, from April 1, was not good enough.
Last week, Marshall told another section of the media that Cabinet had paused the proposed implementation for breathalyser testing until metered taxi rates are in place. He suggested that persons who drink may use that method of transportation and there needed to be a system in place for them to know the rates for various routes.
However, speaking at a press conference at the General Insurance Association of Barbados (GAIB) on Thursday, Roland-Bowen said that was a lame excuse for delaying the use of a tool to combat and reduce road accidents and fatalities.
“The breathalyser laws permit police officers to administer such a test before arresting a driver to determine if there is sufficient evidence for driving while impaired charge. The preliminary results . . . will indicate that it is a valuable tool for police in combating the severe drunk-driver problem in this country,” she said.
“It leaves me to question what the real reason behind this decision [to delay implementation] is. I personally pray it has nothing to do with pride or who will get the glory, while at the expense of potential injury and death to road users.”
The BRSA head argued that the opportunity to ensure safety on the roads, especially with Crop Over around the corner, should not be ignored.
“This road safety measure should be more than welcome and be allowed to serve its intended purpose. After being deprived of social drinking in a Crop Over environment for almost two years, we believe persons will take advantage of this time, seeing it as an opportunity for drivers to engage in this form of irresponsible drinking and then driving,” Roland-Bowen said.
“The association believes one of the first obligations of any responsible government is protecting its people by looking out for their safety and health collectively. Currently, measures are being put in place to reduce the number of sugar-related deaths due to non-communicable diseases, yet they forget the issues we have with death and injuries on our roads related to drunk driving,” she added.
Speaking at the same press conference, Raphael said AOPT joined the BRSA in calling on the Government to come clean on the matter.
He contended that breathalyser testing must be introduced to help create safe roads for road users.
“We would like to meet with the Government to have further discussions as it relates to where we go from here. And in terms of the metering system, how would it work?” Raphael said.
He stated that while taxi drivers would welcome a long-overdue increase in taxi rates, over 75 per cent of members were not interested in the metering system because of the potential challenges it may bring.
“We would have experienced that a number of persons who appear to be, or are drunk, caught our vehicles and they have found themselves unstable and some bring up (vomit), and it really creates a problem for us when these things happen. And I am not sure if we are quite happy in terms of moving those persons.
“We would support it if you can get a designated driver to drive your own vehicle and take you home. We have several experiences, even during Crop Over, where we were called upon to take home persons who found themselves on the highway drunk and can’t get home, or can’t get to their vehicle that is parked at Spring Garden [Mighty Grynner Highway]. By the time we get there, they already have the place all puked up,” Raphael said.
Meanwhile, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Barbados National Organisation of the Disabled (BARNOD) Inc. Diana Applewhite also supported the BRSA’s call for the commencement of breathalyser testing.
She said many persons had become disabled as a result of road accidents – although she could not say whether those were caused by drunk driving – and disclosed that BARNOD is bombarded with calls daily from newly disabled persons struggling to cope.
“And so, for those out there who are behind a wheel, I urge you to think before you turn that key. . . . Be conscious of what you are ingesting and know your limit. Think about the other drivers on the road. I think if we stop and think, a lot of things would be a lot better here in Barbados,” Applewhite said.
anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb
