Garth Rattray | We have lost control of public transport

Every time there are injuries or deaths because of the foolishness that some public transport operators do, I recall way back in about 1999 -2000, when there was a spate of public sector and private sector redundancies, quite a few folks used some of the money to invest in route taxis and minibuses for public transport.

Initially, these [mostly] route taxis were illegal (robots), but their addition to the public transport system was essential because the government-operated buses could not keep pace with the demand. Some invested in minibuses, but their size made them very conspicuous, and they were forced to operate under the permits and licences from the start.

Eventually, legalised route taxis and minibuses mushroomed and took on a life and law of their own. Public transport became a thriving business for many small and medium entrepreneurs. An indeterminate number of people with regular jobs also invested in the public transport business for the additional income that the business provided. It can be fairly lucrative for the owners and operators alike.

Most owners hire drivers for their route taxis and drivers and conductors for their minibuses. Operating a public transport vehicle is very expensive. Mandatory costs include a Public Passenger Vehicle (PPV) licence, a hackney carriage fee, various Transport Authority fees and other necessities, appropriate insurance fees, and some require licenses and fees for rural stage carriage.

HUGE EXPENDITURES

Other huge expenditures occur in servicing, maintenance and repairs. The demands placed on public transport vehicles is phenomenal. The starting, accelerating, braking and stopping takes a toll on engines, transmissions, and the braking systems. The suspensions are battered by the passenger loads and our deplorable roads. Tyres wear rapidly with the constant stops and starts and cornering. Doors and upholstery are under extreme pressure. Many parts are constantly tortured and require repairs from time to time. In fact, the vehicles used for route taxis are not designed for heavy-duty use, they are [almost entirely] non-commercial, pre-owned, domestic Japanese vehicles (colloquially nicknamed ‘deportees’), produced for use by individuals and families.

Several public transport operators bemoan having to pay ‘loader men’ and extortionist rogue cops. I knew a traffic policeman who made a fortune by extorting motorists who ran afoul of the law. When he retired, he invested heavily in the public transport business with route taxis and minibuses. He eventually sold his fleet of vehicles because, ironically, he was hounded by rogue traffic cops who exploited his vehicles when they ran afoul of the law.

Most owners hire drivers for their vehicles. It is a common complaint that the drivers are dishonest and careless. However, owners routinely require a minimum intake to cover their operating costs and anticipated personal profit. The drivers are left to fend for themselves to earn enough money to pay the owners and to earn whatever they can for their personal income. And therein lies the genesis of the jostling, racing each other, aggressive driving, ignoring the rules of the road, endangering the public, and the enumerable conflicts with the police.

Route taxis and minibuses view other road users as obstacles, irritants that invade their space. I have a friend, who visited Jamaica for her mom’s funeral, she was sideswiped by a speeding taxi. His explanation for the crash was that each single lane on Red Hills Road has enough space to accommodate two motor vehicles, so she should have made herself small so that he could drive alongside her!! They perceive themselves as privileged and entitled road users.

ALWAYS IN A HURRY

They are always in a hurry to get fares before their competition. Consequently, they race ahead and ignore the traffic road markings, signs, and lights. They drive as fast as possible so that they can make the round trip to pick up more passengers. They routinely use clearly marked, designated mandatory turning lanes to force their way to the head of the line to go straight ahead… before anyone else.

Driving on the sidewalks, hard shoulders, and soft shoulders to beat the traffic is not unusual. Overtaking long lines of other road users is par for the course. Once any passenger calls out “one stop drivah” or if a pedestrian gestures that he or she needs the taxi or minibus, the driver will do anything to stop immediately, even if it places other road users in danger.

Many years ago, when I complained publicly about the horrible behaviour of many taxi and minibus drivers, just because they have the ‘eat a food’ mentality, someone who headed one of their representative organisations was miffed and said, in public no less, that the police must cut the taxi and minibus drivers who break the law some slack because they need to make a living!

The owner/operators and drivers of taxis and minibuses will never regulate themselves, and their representative organisations are obviously supporting their behaviour, and rogue traffic cops are making a healthy living off them. The good cops can’t keep up with the widespread lawlessness that they practise, and the justice system can’t keep up with the hundreds of unpaid tickets that some of them accumulate.

The few zero tolerance campaigns only last for a few weeks, then things go back to their usual lawlessness …. dark tints, loud lewd music, overcrowding, and a plethora of violations.

The truly dangerous problem is that regular drivers [including the police] are patterning the taxis and minibuses. Automobile crashes and road fatalities are certain to increase unless ‘zero tolerance’ is made a permanent feature of traffic policing.

Garth Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice, and author of ‘The Long and Short of Thick and Thin’. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and garthrattray@gmail.com