Enforcing ‘points system’ may help keep errant drivers in check – Benn

Enforcing the points system, which was introduced years ago to demerit drivers found culpable of breaching traffic laws, may be one of the solutions to curb the current spate of accidents on the roadways, especially those involving big trucks.

Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn said this on Monday while speaking to the News Room on the sidelines of the launch of Road Safety Month 2024, at Leonora Track and Field Facility, West Coast Demerara. The observances for the month are being held under the theme, “Do the right thing.”

“The solution resides in better presence and enforcement.

“And also, in relation to putting in the points system for persons who drive badly, get in accidents – that they are demerited on a points system which was introduced some years ago, but never activated,” Benn said.

He added, “The more they get demerited, they’ll reach a point where their license will be taken away.”

According to him, such a move would also have an impact on their insurance.

“The insurance will either have to charge them higher rates or don’t give them insurance at all.”

A significant factor in accidents involving trucks and motorcycles, Minister Benn expressed, is that the number of these vehicles has more than doubled.

“One would see that construction of roads and private buildings, a lot of sand and stone and other aggregates are required for this effort. So the number of trucks has increased and the frequency of their use on the roads has increased,” he noted.

He disclosed that the Traffic Department of the Guyana Police Force, along with his ministry, has been discussing who can apply for a truck license. Some persons barely reach the age of being allowed to be a truck driver, but the question of their awareness, their training, and the way they operate their vehicle is increasingly a cause for concern.

A lot, too, has to do with the owners of businesses in terms of ensuring better maintenance of the trucks.