Guyana’s roads have continued to be killing grounds! The country’s roadways seem to be competing for the highest death toll award!
The causes of accidents vary from narrow roads, careless driving and over speeding. And then there is the more popular reason, some drivers just refuse to follow the rules. They will overtake other vehicles in narrow and sharp corners, drive while intoxicated, exceed the speed limit and literally drive themselves and other innocent road-users into the grave.
There have been concerted efforts to enforce existing rules to help curb the carnage, including the implementation of Operation Safeway, which also aided in supporting the poorly equipped Police Force to tackle traffic issues. According to statistics released by the Guyana Police Force, there has been a decline in road accidents and they have directly attributed this to Operation Safeway.
Given the propensity of particular behaviours, road usage needs to be looked at holistically. While it may be important to revisit the process of training and licensing of drivers, in an effort to strengthen their understanding of signs and road usage, it is also important to reflect on existing programmes as well; officials also need to pay attention to the design and construction of the nation’s roadways.
Compounding the problem is the poor state of many roads. Many carriageways are still riddled with potholes and uneven surfaces, which has led to head-on collisions as motorists drive from left to right and back in a desperate bid to avoid them.
As ongoing projects, selected highways across Guyana have been undergoing rehabilitation works; these include the East Bank Demerara highway. It is commendable that in the new design, pedestrians and cyclists have been catered for, as the roadway now boasts a foot/cycle path. However, given the already limited space for the expansion, it may not have been the wisest design choice, to have the path constructed to take up such a large area.
The highway is now simply too narrow. Our planners should take note that a high incidents of accidents since the completion of the roadway and examine the causes. Road users now have to be mindful of the fact that the road shoulders along the EBD Highway are bordered by concrete separations, which separates the footpath from the main thoroughfare. This could prove to be problematic, and given the already carless attitude of many motorists, they might forget this structure has been added. The lack of adequate road lighting in many areas turns this into a recipe for disaster. The additions are not outfitted with reflectors. One wonders if there are plans to illuminate the concrete partitions.
In addition, whereas many accidents have been blamed on reckless driving and speeding, it is inevitable that motorists will collide with these partitions and this could have fatal consequences. A concrete median has been added along the Carifesta Avenue and this has drastically reduced the space available for vehicles to traverse; again this is a disaster waiting to happen.
In the meantime, while motorists and road users get acclimated with the additions and changes, additional traffic officers should be placed in these areas to ensure orderly movement of road users and vehicles. The police may find it useful to have more road signs erected to guide motorists. Any and all venues and opportunities that exist for the reduction of accidents should be examined and implemented. Everyone should become involved, engineers and contractors, the minibus and hire car associations, NGOs , and road users should offer their opinions and suggestions. This information can then be passed on to the Authorities to help them in crafting a wider strategy to address road usage.
