The Jamaica government says the new Road Traffic Act calls for persons training to ride motor cycles will have to be registered at the appropriate school as the authorities seek to deal with the increasing number of fatalities so far this year.
“I am happy that the new Road Traffic Act will be coming into force soon,” Transport and Mining Minister, Robert Montague, said, noting that 84 people have died as a result of motorcycle accidents to date.
Montague said the government is working on some new rules for motorcycle operators and pillion passengers, especially those riders who are not licensed.
“In training to ride bikes, because it is now the popular thing, the new Road Traffic Act requires that you have to be at a registered school to learn to ride,” Montague said, adding that persons selling bikes will be required to sell the safety equipment with them, “because too many persons believe it is a wonderful thing to be on the back of a bike without a helmet”.
The government also announced that hundreds of cameras have been installed across the island in keeping with the proposed electronic surveillance system to help reduce traffic violations.
Montague said approximately 490 traffic cameras have been installed across Kingston, 80 in Ocho Rios, 120 in Montego Bay, 38 in May Pen and 30 in Mandeville.
The state-of-the-art systems have licence plate reading technology, which are geared towards recording vehicles involved in traffic offences.
Government said that under the proposed system, unmanned electronic devices will be used to capture violations and that owners or drivers of a motor vehicle, at the time of the infraction, will be sanctioned in keeping with the Road Traffic Act and Regulations.
The authorities said that the system will also assist in the execution of the enforcement and legislation components of the National Road Safety Policy and Montague said this will also assist with identifying traffic violators and those who violate rules that are in keeping with the new Road Traffic Act.
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