Minibuses are serving a deadly purpose

Nov 04, 2010 Letters

Dear Editor,
Many passengers are not aware that the second they enter public transportation in Guyana, especially a minibus, their lives are at stake.
Little do they know that the chances of that vehicle being involved in an accident are 10 times greater than that of a car. There ought to be a stop to the operation of the minibus in Guyana.
It is serving a deadly purpose. It is the vehicle in which most of our citizens are dying on the road. Just a few years ago, another deadly accident (several victims) rocked Berbice. That time, it took place on the #52 Road on the Corentyne.
I do not travel in public minibuses anymore. I stopped a few years back because the service and atmosphere is too atrocious for me. I pay $200 to travel with a car to go to UG.
The $40 less that I would’ve paid for using a bus may be $40 that could save my life one day. Most Guyanese utilize the minibuses as their preferential choice of transportation. It’s faster, cheaper and widely available.
Those decisions have cost many their lives. Usually, most UG Tain students and Nand Persaud Blue Sky workers use minibuses. Cars have always been safer. They are less prone to accidents.
The big buses would be an excellent replacement to the minibuses but those calls are being echoed on deaf ears.
Too many questions remain about the horrific accident on the #19 Public Road. This road is the longest continuous straight road in the Caribbean.
This road begins what was formerly called the Corentyne Highway several decades ago. This #19 Road is a haven for speeding vehicles, especially buses.
It is a racing track where vehicles overtake dangerously regardless of the amount of traffic on the road or the weather.
Friday’s accident began with a driver who allegedly overtook another vehicle; that single reckless action — fuelled by the torrential downpour – resulted in unimaginable disaster.
Many are so quick to cast blame on either party. However, I see both parties at fault. The severity of impact to the bus proved that the minibus had been speeding down to New Amsterdam, as they would normally do. They knew fully well that traffic ranks would not be on the road since it was raining heavily at that time.
They had to be speeding. None of the passengers sought to ask the driver to slow down. Then another speeding element was racing in the opposite direction.
And then, one of many unorthodox overtaking practices that usually take place on a daily basis on Guyana’s roads had been performed by the truck causing the smash-up.
It should not have happened if both vehicles had been traveling at the speed limit. Where were the traffic ranks when you needed them with their ticket books and radar guns?
The police are so reactive (just like every other authority in this place), now I am sure all the roads, especially this treacherous road in Berbice would be filled with traffic ranks. But this would only happen for a week or two, and then everyone would be off their guard again.
Look what happens when people make less desirable choices, and when people put their lives in the hands of irresponsible men and speeding vehicles.
Look at the devastation that follows — that the dead is not left to face — for the relatives of these dead men, women and child.
Look at the number of children they left behind who will now be without a father or mother.
Well, the authorities must head to the drawing board and make some serious decisions to make our roadways safer than they are at this time.
They must ensure that this road system in Berbice — one of the most dangerous — along with the Linden Highway (dangerous as well) be monitored daily and permanently.
They should lower the speed limit if they have to. Monitor minibuses that are usually overloaded (as was the case with the bus in the accident). Just imagine, many of the seats in this bus were still intact, but its passengers had been decimated. How can our transportation system allow people to travel in vehicles that provide no seat belts? How can minibuses claim so many lives on our roadways and still be allowed to ply several coastal routes? Many of these drivers bought their licences and have no experience whatsoever to deal with a vehicle that has been built to drive at excessive speeds.
Yes, the minibus is a vehicle that can get you faster to your location. It’s also the cheapest form of public transportation in Guyana. But I would never compromise my safety or my life for a few dollars, never.
Leon Suseran

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Minibuses are serving a deadly purpose

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