Police renew crackdown on illegal motorcycles, ATVs

The Barbados Police Service has stepped up its islandwide crackdown on illegal motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) as part of Operation Road Assurance, a traffic enforcement campaign aimed at restoring road safety and curbing reckless behaviour on major highways, senior police officials said Wednesday.

“Operation Road Assurance is a traffic enforcement operation designed to target the illegal operations of motorcycles and ATVs on the highways and across Barbados,” Superintendent Wayne Archer, responsible for the Special Operations Management Services Division, told reporters at the Police Command Centre at District A Police Station.

So far, police have seized 69 motorcycles, with some displayed at the District Compound Traffic Office and others returned to owners who provide proof that their vehicles are road legal. In last month’s sweep alone, police seized 26 motorcycles.

“We are also looking to seize these motorcycles, of which many are operating without licences and insurance in place.”

The operation, first introduced in June 2023, was restarted in September following a brief lull while officers attended to other policing duties.

He added: “We recognise that once again there is the presence of these motorcycles, ATVs on the streets, and our efforts are being redoubled. We are again putting the Operation Road Assurance in place to target this activity on specific days and specific periods based on intelligence that may come to hand.”

Inspector Anthony Cadogan of the Traffic Division highlighted particular areas of concern, such as the Mighty Grynner Highway, where cyclists have been known to pull stunts like wheelies.

“Yes, more than all, on the Mighty Grynner Highway so to speak and then the Lears. There’s an area in Lears where they congregate and do a lot of stunts, especially on Sundays,” he said. Insp Cadogan also reported incidents of motorcycles striking vehicles and leaving damage behind without accountability.

While the current seizures have not directly uncovered motorcycles being used for criminal activities, ongoing operations such as Broken Trident are investigating their potential use in violent crimes, said Supt Archer. “The crime of concern, obviously, is the firearm incidents and shootings. So, in general, in a more tactical way, it is going after those persons who may be riding motorcycles for the purpose of committing crime,” he explained.

(SZB)