Joint Exercise, Bus Stalled, Collision & Delays
A joint exercise this morning [Feb 8] by the police and TCD “aimed at getting unlicensed and uninsured vehicles off the road” was “compromised” by a road traffic collision in Paget and a bus stalling at the roundabout which ”resulted in problematic traffic delays for commuters.”
A police spokesperson said, “The Bermuda Police Service [BPS], was this morning engaged in a joint exercise with the Transport Control Department [TCD], aimed at getting unlicensed and uninsured vehicles off the road in recognition of significant public concern towards responsible driving and road safety.
“However, what would normally have been a simple exercise was unexpectedly and significantly compromised by a road traffic collision in Paget resulting in injury to the road user as well as a Department of Public Transportation bus, stalling at the South Roundabout.
“This combination of events resulted in problematic traffic delays for commuters heading east along South Shore Road, Middle Road and Harbour Road.
“Upon recognizing the gravity of the traffic situation, the joint TCD/BPS initiative was stood down and officers redeployed to assist with clearing the congestion and improving the flow of traffic.
“It is anticipated the joint TCD/BPS initiative to target illegal vehicles will again be in effect on Wednesday and Friday of this week and further details to this will be provided.
“Whilst it is regrettable that road users were delayed this morning, the BPS and its partners are committed to ensuring safety on our roads. However, today’s operation was compromised by unforeseen events elsewhere, resulting in traffic congestion.”
Maybe while they’re at it they do something about the huge amounts of illegal license plates , many of which appear intentionally illegible.
Government needs to recoup the money that was paid out to un-employed individuals during lockdown. SMH!
I hope you aren’t unintentionally supporting people who drive around in unlicensed and uninsured vehicles . A major contributor of hit and run accidents .
So what happened to that multi million dollar system they installed with the tags to track uninsured vehicles? Wasn’t that implemented to SOLVE THIS EXACT ISSUE of resources !
8 May 2007 Article (Did this ever Happen??)
Bermuda’s Transport Control Department, a division of the tiny string of island’s Ministry of Tourism, announced May 7 that it plans to automate vehicle registration, compliance and enforcement with an island-wide deployment of EVR (electronic vehicle registration). The EVR system is made up of RFID tags, antennas, readers and a database system.
Over the next five years, the program is expected to generate over $11 million in lost fees from unlicensed and uninsured vehicles, according to a press release. At the same time TCD expects to reduce the number of non-compliant vehicles on the island’s roadways to less than 1 percent, officials said.
The program kicks off this month.
Here’s how the whole system will work, from tag issuance to back-end data collection. A unique identification number will be established for each vehicle registered on the island; each number, or code, is then linked to a record in a centralized vehicle database.
As car (truck, van or SUV) owners have their vehicles inspected or registered they will receive a windshield sticker embedded with an RFID tag (the sticker is tamper-resistant to dissuade any removal of the tag). The tag, when read by a specially equipped RFID reader, will send off information to TCD’s database.
On the backend, each vehicle code is linked to a record in the vehicle database. To quell any concerns over privacy and security of data, Bermuda officials have encrypted the code on the RFID tags, which store no actual personal data.
The vehicle database itself identifies vehicles, not drivers, according to the release, which also states that the EVR system retains only photo images of non-compliant or criminal vehicles. A back-office VPS (violation processing system) will automatically generate citations, while the EVR system itself will validate commercial vehicle registration and issue violations for trucks operating in restricted areas, during rush hour, without a permit, officials said.
Why is it when a driver reports difficulty with bus and is instructed to change it. That bus is not pulled from use but left in circulation. Happens well to often when the above happens, stalls, overheats, radio does not work, the problem is reported as soon as it occurs and another driver reports the bus had same problem day before.
Why do it in the morning when the most people are trying to get into town for work. No matter if there are accidents or not you are delaying hard working people from going to work post COVID lockdown when people are trying to recoup monies from the lockdown earlier last year. This is straight foolishness and no understanding of your struggling citizens. Most people have been set way back. The choice to license the car or feed the kids. Think about it government and police commissioner.
Definitely applaud this statement. Reading other comments above, not everyone has bad intention, some people are really trying to make ends meet with all that is going on and the stress and no help to license your car, insurance on a vehicle is a must. TCD doesn’t help us at all when it comes to licecing. I applaud BF&M who allows payment plans for customers who can’t afford that lump some up front. It helps ALOT !
Yes, it is about feeding the Kids , taking care of Medical Expenses and the Family car being off the road for nearly 3 years.
Nice , isn’t it?! Prices and cost of living way to high. Gov’t has lost a customer at TCD these past 3 years because I can’t afford to pay their fees and the insurance. What’s next to go? Gov’t wants everything we have, our arms, legs and blood.
They make things very hard for average citizens and seniors. And how many millions have gone missing due to corruption over the years? Very nasty!
Covid has made things much worse. Where do we families turn for financial help? It’s not right having children with no car to transport them years later. Very sad state of affairs we are in, on this island.
Not all of us are in that boat! Some of us are doing very well but we earned it through years of sacrifice and saving and now we have our war chest to fall back on! And if they intro income tax I will keep my money in a safe at home so they can’t trace it!