By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

TRAFFIC police are investigating the circumstances surrounding a hit-and-run traffic fatality that occurred on the Tonique Williams-Darling highway.

The death of Friday’s victim, a man, pushed 2018’s traffic death toll to 56.

According to reports, a man was attempting to cross the highway near a business establishment shortly after 11pm, when he was struck by a red Suzuki car travelling in the east bound lane.

The driver of the vehicle did not remain at the scene.

Paramedics attempted to revive the victim but were unsuccessful, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The incident follows the deaths of two pedestrians, a man and a woman, who were killed following a collision with a car driven by an off-duty marine.

According to police, the driver was heading north on Marathon Road in the area of Samana Drive shortly before 1am when she lost control of her car and struck the pair, both of whom died at the scene.

The Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) identified the driver as an off-duty marine who was driving a private vehicle. The statement noted that the marine, a woman, waited for paramedics and police to arrive at the scene before being taken by ambulance to the Princess Margaret Hospital for medical treatment.

Those fatalities followed a serious of traffic accidents that took place in Grand Bahama on September 15 involving four vehicles, including a church bus transporting parishioners.

According to reports, the incident occurred shortly before 8pm on the Warren J Levarity Highway.

The driver of the bus and passengers suffered both slight and serious injuries.

Last week, a Bill was tabled in Parliament with proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Act, one of which will make it illegal to drive or operate a vehicle while using a cellphone.

The Bill, tabled on Wednesday, makes it illegal to drive or operate a vehicle while using an electronic communications device, “whether by holding in one hand or both hands or with any other part of the body or otherwise,” unless the device is attached to the motor vehicle or is a part of a fixture in the vehicle.

The legislation further requires “the device remain affixed while being used or operated, or is specially adapted or designed to be affixed to the person of the driver or operator as a hands-free device and is used to enable the driver or operator to use or operate the electronic communication device without holding it”.

Driving instructors also will be prohibited from holding electronic devices under the Bill but the stipulation will not apply to those driving emergency vehicles or a vehicle that is lawfully parked and not impeding traffic. The penalty for contravening these provisions will be a fine not exceeding $1000.

If the bill becomes law, it will also become illegal to have an open alcoholic beverage while driving.

The amendment also prohibits people from obtaining a license if they have outstanding fines or have not paid the requisite fees.