Chang
The taxis and minibuses have become the new higglers of the street. And unlike the ones on foot, the police seem unable (or unwilling) to deal with them.
They pick up and let off passengers anywhere on the street and on any side of the vehicle. Many times the taxis can be seen loading and unloading customers using the right side of the car. This is a most dangerous practice and is a violation of the road code. Yet they do so with impunity. Just last week, I witnessed a young lady exiting the taxi on the right-hand side in the middle of traffic with a baby in her arms.
The drivers of taxis (and minibuses) weave in and out of traffic, creating lanes that are not there as per the road markings, cutting to the head of the line by using the right-turn-only lanes. Their hands hang out the windows acting like diviners, like gods mysteriously parting traffic whenever and wherever they please, assuming that us poor motorists will always give them way. One wonders if that was the reason behind that very serious accident which claimed seven lives (and counting?), involving two minibuses, in a head-on collision along the Llandovery main road recently.
prospective passengers
They stop at any point, beckoning prospective passengers while obstructing traffic, oftentimes under the noses of the police. Whether it is Montego Bay, Santa Cruz, Christiana, Savanna-la-Mar, or Kingston, take your pick, the taxis epitomise offensive road manners and bad/illegal driving. Not to mention the illegal U-turns, cutting across sometimes four lanes of traffic.
There is a collateral and corrosive effect of this on other motorists, in that when this happens over and over again, one is prone to follow these bad habits 'just once', then twice, then again, until it pervades the entire motoring community. Even if all other motorists tried this illegal driving 'just once', isn't this a recipe for chaos on our roads?
The temptation is made even greater by their utter contempt for other road users, in that they will curse you if you even attempt to 'stay the course' when they are trying to divine traffic for their place into your lane.
blocking traffic
They block traffic while summoning their passengers. Some of the prime examples are the left-hand lane (and sometimes the right-hand) of Hope Road at the intersection with Half-Way Tree Road, the entrance of Half-Way Tree Road at Clock Tower (in front of NCB) and the left side of the entrance of Suthermere Road (beside Jamaica National). But if the truth be told, each one of us can cite our own 'pet' example.
I could go on and on with examples of bad driving, for instance, the blocking of driveways which they convert to stops for collecting and letting off passengers, but we all know of these practices.
The police are not blind and must see these many instances. The question is, are they blind to the law? This is most infuriating, as the police seem to single out the other motorists for stopping and checking even when those other blatant instances are occurring within their eyesight. One can well imagine these taxi and minibus drivers chuckling with the knowledge that whatever wrong other motorists are caught doing, they in turn do much worse and much more often while rarely being prosecuted.
One wonders, however, if I am just whistling in the wind. Over to you, Mr Commissioner.
Another of my pet peeves concerns the number of malfunctioning traffic lights, particularly in the Corporate Area.
It is truly rare to find all the lights working at any particular intersection. If they have not been hit down (and not repaired) the bulbs are blown or the electronics have malfunctioned. Then again, most are turned in the wrong direction. Even a split second lost in trying to locate which is the appropriate light is a split second that could cause a traffic collision.
Not every person or driver has perfect 20/20 vision and oftentimes, those traffic signals that are working are too dim, especially when the sun is directly behind or shining on the said lights. There are newer lights which feature LEDS (light-emitting diodes) which are much brighter, longer lasting (almost 100,000 hours vs under 1,000 hours), and much more energy efficient. They do cost about three to four times more, but pay back this increased cost in three years in terms of lower operating/energy costs. This represents a rate of return on investment of over 30 per cent. If the government received 30 per cent return on all their investments, we would be debt-free within 10 years.
FACE OF GOVERNMENT
Traffic signals are the most visible signs of whether a country is being managed properly. I think it might be proper to call them the face of any government. A malfunctioning light is like a blemish on this face.
It is akin to one of those hygiene factors I read about many years ago in my MBA Behavioural Science classes. Conceptualised by Frederick Herzberg, these are factors that do not necessarily motivate employees (read citizens) but are essential to maintain satisfaction.
Money spent on ensuring that these traffic lights operate properly would be multiplied many times over. Can something be done to correct all these traffic signals? Over to you, Mr Traffic Authority.
Egerton Chang is a businessman who may be contacted at e_rider69@hotmail.com or feedback sent to columns@gleanerjm.com.