> PTI Bahamas' 2019 Road Safety Proposal
> Gaining Traction: Uninsured Vehicles
> Concerns Echoed by Police Chief

Nassau, Bahamas – Bahamas Auto Safe and Inspection Centre (PTI Bahamas) today commended Chief Superintendent of Police David Lockhart's recent statement acknowledging the issue of uninsured vehicles on the roads, a key concern addressed in PTI's 2019 Road Safety Proposal.

> Longstanding Concerns, Validated
> Solutions:

Chief Superintendent Lockhart's revelation that "fifty per cent" of vehicles in accidents this year were uninsured" aligns with PTI's proposal, highlighting the estimated 40% uninsured vehicle rate in 2019 and advocating for stricter enforcement. This statement serves as strong validation of PTI's proposed solutions, including:

- Identifying and impounding uninsured
vehicles: Mirroring the Chief
Superintendent's Call to Action,
PTI's proposal outlined methods for
identifying and impounding uninsured
vehicles, effectively taking them off
the roads.
- Combating corruption within the Road
Traffic Department: Recognizing
loopholes exploited by uninsured
drivers, PTI's proposal addressed
potential corrupt practices within
the department that enabled such
operations.

> From Proposal to Urgency:

Following Transport and Energy Minister Jobeth Coleby-Davis' earlier acknowledgement of uninsured vehicle concerns, this recent development reinforces the importance and urgency of implementing PTI's 2019 proposal. The Chief Superintendent's vocalization of these concerns further underscores the need for immediate action.

> PTI Bahamas urges the Bahamas
> Government and relevant authorities to:

- Revisit PTI's 2019 Road Safety
Proposal: A comprehensive document
containing practical solutions,
the proposal offers a roadmap for
addressing the critical issue of
uninsured vehicles.
- Start implementing solutions: PTI
calls for swift action to enact the
proposed measures, prioritizing the
safety of Bahamian citizens on the
roads.
- Address the root cause: Eliminating
the problem of uninsured vehicles
requires tackling the underlying
cultural biases, political agendas,
and potential corruption that enables
their operation.

"For too long," states PTI Bahamas, "recommendations by Bahamians have been ignored. It is time to prioritize our people's safety and implement solutions validated by no less than the Chief of Police himself. Innocent Bahamians should not be the casualties of inaction."

> PTI Bahamas stands ready to
> collaborate with the government and
> relevant stakeholders to implement the
> 2019 Road Safety Proposal and make
> Bahamian roads safe for all.*

Yet, they want to add tire aligment to the inspection process, punishing those who are insured.

What they should do is to end temporary insurance cover. And force those who want to switch before the year us up to visit road traffic, and pay a fee.

Many seemingly "good" cars are Frankenstein creations stitched together from multiple wrecks.

It is a common misconception that vehicle inspections are designed to punish car owners, but this is far from the truth. Inspections are essential to ensure that vehicles are safe and roadworthy. The inspection report allows car owners to take corrective measures and bring their vehicles in line with safety regulations, thereby improving their efficiency. This ensures that the vehicle is fuel-efficient and safe to operate.

If a vehicle is found to be mechanically unsafe, and the owner is not aware of it, the vehicle will be deemed 'unroadworthy' and advised to be unfit from a technical mechanical point of view. Many vehicles, including salvage and junk vehicles, are imported into the Bahamas without being checked for mechanical and structural integrity. The United Nations has labelled Africa, The Bahamas, and other "third world" countries as "dumping grounds" for the world's used and unwanted cars.

It is important to remember that just because a vehicle starts and drives does not necessarily mean it is safe to operate. Many seemingly "good" cars are, in fact, Frankenstein creations stitched together from multiple wrecks in a salvage operation that is completed to look visually appealing but is unsafe. A technical inspection can expose this to owners and could be a valuable service before purchasing a potentially dangerous vehicle.

Most used and old vehicles in the Bahamas will fit an inspection category of - ***Pass and Advise***; however, some will undoubtedly fail an inspection.

The new and latest trend is to rent cheap rental cars, they're already insured, aren't they, and the occupants couldn't care less whether or not they mash your car from the way they drive them. These are also used for criminal activities as they offer a certain degree of anonymity to the users.

Yet the 50 % get licensed. That means people in road traffic should have large houses and fancy cars. The police need to investigate the road traffic department and see whom have inv3stments worth more than their incomes

An old story: the country's Auditor General published a report on the Road Traffic Department years ago. The report suggested that the department could be losing up to $20 million annually through fraud. However, the then Minister of Transport, Glenys Hanna Martin, rejected the report and accused the auditor of making guesses about road traffic.

The Report suggests that:

If a forecast were performed based on the total number of licence plates produced and issued, approximately 374,000 plates, to the public as of June 30, 2015, one would estimate that the motor vehicle licence revenue should be at a minimum of $73 million dollars (374,000 x $195.00) instead of the reported average of $26 million dollars per annum. If the approximate number of 374,000 plates were reduced by 50%, there would still be an estimated loss of $10 million dollars as compared to the actual recorded revenue noted herein.

When our company conducted research preparing our 2019 Road Safety Proposal, we were advised to "watch our backs."

Glenys Hanna Martin:
http://www.tribune242.com/news/2016/may…

http://www.tribune242.com/news/2017/mar…

Road Traffic Department Audit Report
https://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/wcm/conn…

Bahamians are fast asleep on the level of corruption and would be surprised 'who knows, who knows' who is involved.

and nothing will change

The Bahamas has one of the highest rates of police persons per capita of population; with this truly shocking admittance of the failure of the Police Road Traffic Persons ability to enforce the most basic tenets of traffic enforcement perhaps the country needs 6 or 9 more Assistant Police Commissioners, and at least 19 more Superintendents, and 38 more Assistant Superindendents, to get the job done. Whatever we have now just ain't working, it would seem.