DRIVERS and front seat passengers are expected to pay the State $1.3 million for failing to buckle up while travelling in a vehicle.
The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) in a media release stated that this was a result of the UTURN Traffic Enforcement E-ticketing system launched in May 2020.
The Traffic and Highway Patrol Branch’s Road Policing Task Force (RPTF) hoped this will act as a deterrent to motorists, further decreasing the 19% reduction in fatal road traffic accidents witnessed for 2020.
The TTPS said for January to June 2020, 55 road users had lost their lives in road traffic crashes, when compared to 68 for the same period in 2019.
According to the Police Service, Traffic Safety Coordinator Sergeant Brent Batson, expressed his disappointment that many motorists were still receiving traffic tickets for seatbelt offences.
It said an exercise was conducted by the Traffic and Highway Patrol Branch’s RPTF on July 10.
The TTPS stated that 1,300 motorists were ticketed for various traffic offences while some drivers incurred four demerit points for failing to adhere to this road regulation.
It said 126 Electronic Fixed Penalty Notices were issued for several breaches including speeding, failing to wear seatbelts, driving while using a mobile phone and driving a vehicle at night with one headlight.
The TTPS said 12 drivers were arrested for drunk driving with one producing a reading of 119 microgrammes of alcohol, more than three times the legal limit of 35 microgrammes.
It added that the exercises were done along three major highways, Beetham Highway, the Churchill Roosevelt Highway and the Uriah Butler Highway.
The Police Service said similar exercises were also conducted along Main Roads in Dinsley, Arouca, Orange Grove, Tacarigua and Caura.
Meanwhile, the TTPS said Sergeant Batson revealed that the Sit, Click & Drive awareness programme will soon start under the umbrella of its iRoadsafe Education and Awareness Campaign aimed at helping road users practice safer and more responsible behaviour and avoid points on their driver’s permits.
