By: Sandena James
When police on the road robot taxi stop run. If you live in a rural community like I do, it may take forever to get a vehicle with a PPV (registration) licence plate (or not) to take you to your destination. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, a friend or neighbour who drives may feel kind and offer a lift.
When ‘police on the road’ even vehicles with PPV licence get scarce. No one really wants to take chances with the Transport Authority who seem to always find some reason to issue a ticket or, worse, call the wrecker man. Most taxi operators remain “off duty” for the time while the bravetake extreme cautionary measures to be on the safe side.
When “police on the road” prepare to be late. If you don’t have a car, it is one of the worst things to have to depend on a route taxi to arrive without it being already fully occupied. The bus stops are always packed with commuters who push and shove just as much as rush hour in Half Way Tree when getting on a JUTC shuttle bus.
When ‘police on the road’ you feel as nervous as the person around the steering wheel. You see the other drivers flashing lights and pointing fingers to indicate the calamity around the corner and you pray the car doesn’t get pulled over. If you pass, it’s a joyous moment where a sigh of relief is let out, well, until tomorrow again.
When “police on the road”, you begin to question the reality of their jobs. Many may argue, aren’t there other more important things they have to do rather than bothering our local taxi men? But then when we hear of tragic road fatalities, we are reminded as to why the job, though causing inconveniences, must be done.
It is a well-known fact that it is the duty of police assigned to the traffic department to handle motorists who do not observe road traffic laws. And of course it is imperative that there should be persons who look out for some of these unlawful drivers and “robot taxis”. However, the state of disarray that motorists and commuters experience on a regular basis is very distressing.
For the duty of overseeing and enforcing traffic safety compliance on our roads and highways, commuters and motorists, whether in compliance or not, literally and figuratively pay the price. Whether it is through countless tickets, fines, late arrivals at work… and the list goes on.
Yes that’s how it is when “police on the road”. We commuters and motorists understand and appreciate the duty traffic cops are obligated to do. However, we commuters and motorists have jobs to do too, and we commuters and motorists are too often inconvenienced.
Furthermore, there is the issue of corruption where certain vehicles are seldom pulled over, but I won’t go there. That is another story.
