EDITORIAL: Get tough on reckless riders

THE fireworks are finished, the parties over. We have officially marked the new year and now real business must resume. The kind of year we have will be determined by the kind of approach we set early, particularly on troublesome matters in the country.

 

This is especially true of the situation regarding motorcyclists. It is true that not every cyclist is reckless; at least one local bikers’ association has spoken out against the nonsense exhibited from other riders. However, it is now long past the point where we as Barbadians can continue to live with irresponsible cyclists performing crazy stunts and showing scant respect for other road users.

 

Acting Inspector Roland Cobbler, Public Relations Officer of the Royal Barbados Police Force, has made it abundantly clear the Force will not tolerate lawless behaviour on the roads. Our law officials do what they can under strained circumstances, however, it is not easy for police to apprehend these persons, particularly since some are suspected to be illegally licensed or hide their identities behind masks that hide their faces.

 

It is also unfortunate that we have reached a point where the public seems prepared to take the matter into its own hands. A video circulating on social media early last month showed how one motorist acted rashly in confronting a group of riders. It was fortunate the incident resulted in no fatalities, but clearly, two wrongs don’t make a right and the driver was also lashing out in a reckless manner by trying to take out road rage on the riders. This incident, however, shows just how frustrating and frightening it is for road users, who feel helpless or fear for their lives, while these cyclists continue to perform dangerous stunts without due care or attention.

 

Enough is enough. Real-time acts are hard to monitor and by the time a road user communicates with the Force about incidents occurring in an area, the offenders are long gone. Perhaps another, more practical solution can be implemented. From time to time, police officers or road marshals carry out random checks to ensure drivers on the roads are up-to-date with insurance and licensing requirements. Since there is some doubt about the legality of the cyclists who are reckless, perhaps a more feasible solution to carry out checks may be for officers to swoop down on areas where these riders are known to associate. This method, just like the on-the-road procedure, will clear the innocent and reveal the guilty. To go further, it may be useful to involve the Task Force or Defence Force to ensure all persons can be processed or checked without attempts to escape the law.

 

This may or may not decrease actual road recklessness, but it would surely remove those persons who have no business being on the roads, particularly if there is corresponding legislation that can allow police to confiscate unregistered motorcycles the same time. It would also go a long way to showing a zero-tolerance approach to a situation that has been allowed to fester for far too long. 

 

As we venture further into 2017, we do so with the understanding that it is past time to reclaim our roads for the majority of the good drivers, motorcyclists and pedestrians who find themselves at the ransom of a foolhardy minority.