Route 42 minibuses stripped of amplifiers, speaker boxes, tint

…as Police conduct traffic campaign

Guyana has seen a 9.5 percent reduction in road accidents and deaths so far for 2022, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) has said.

From 2021 to date, the country has recorded 15 accidents, with 19 deaths. Last year, the country recorded 21 deaths from 20 accidents.
The Police Force, in a statement issued this week, has said that to keep these numbers at a low rate, it would be conducting several traffic campaigns around the country.
On Tuesday, Police from Traffic Headquarters, Eve Leary conducted a two-hour targeted traffic campaign on Route 42 minibuses, during which several minibus operators were stopped and arrested after they were found to be in breach of Section 19 (1) of the Motor Vehicles and Road Traffic Regulations, Chapter 51:02, which speaks to alterations of motor vehicles, occasioning higher license duty. Some of the infractions were: the addition of amplifiers, speaker boxes, stickers, visors on the back windscreen, and tint.
According to the Police Force, the aim of these enforcement campaigns is to prevent the occurrence of road traffic violations by means of control and punitive sanctions.
“Enforcement reduces high-risk road user behaviour. When it comes to defensive driving, obeying traffic rules and using common sense (are) essential. The ranks reiterated that traffic rules are in place to help protect citizens while operating on the roadway”, a GPF report has stated.
Two months ago, the Traffic Department of the GPF had announced its intention to conduct countrywide exercises aimed at clamping down on untidy and reckless minibus drivers and conductors.
Deputy Superintendent Timothy Williams, Divisional Traffic Officer of Division 4A – (Georgetown), had said the minibus culture in Guyana poses many challenges for the Police Force, and it is time that this matter be dealt with aggressively.
The most recent fatal accident occurred on Wednesday evening along Mandela Avenue in
Georgetown, and claimed the life of a 57-year-old pedal cyclist. Dead is Lyndon Austin of Go Slow Fourth Avenue, Tucville, Georgetown.
Reports are that motorcar PAC 1350 was proceeding north along the western carriageway of the roadway while the pedal cyclist was proceeding in the same direction on the western carriageway. As the driver of the motorcar was in the vicinity of the Rubis Gas Station, it is alleged that the pedal cyclist proceeded to cross the western carriageway, going from west to east, and in the process of doing so, he ended up in the path of the motorcar. As a result, the front centre portion of the motorcar came into contact with the pedal cyclist.
Due to the impact, the pedal cyclist was thrown onto the bonnet and windscreen of the motorcar, and landed on the surface of the road, receiving injuries about his body in the process. He later succumbed to his injuries.
On March 8, in a tragic accident at De Willem, West Coast Demerara (WCD), three men lost their lives when a car became uncontrollable and slammed into them as they stood in a nearby sports bar.
Then, one week later, on March 15, two men died in an early morning accident along the Number One Public Road, Corentyne, Berbice in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne). In both instances, the drivers were allegedly racing.