With 17 road fatalities already for 2016, partygoers are being warned against drunk driving as the DUI Task Force will be waiting outside Carnival fetes. Already 65 people have been arrested by the DUI Task Force following last year’s toll of 1,149 arrests for drunk driving.
With the message being instilled in secondary school students around San Fernando yesterday, co-ordinator of the Police Service Road Safety Project SRP Brent Batson advised motorists leaving parties to request breathalyser test from the police before getting into their vehicles.
Speaking at the Interact Club of Naparima College’s Smarter on “D” Road programme at the school auditorium, Batson said that could save lives and money. He said at the same time last year, there were five road deaths. Of the 17 deaths in 2016, the drivers involved in five of them are suspected of driving while under the influence of alcohol.
Further to that, he added, three of 17 deaths were women, ages 27, 42 and 62, three were pedestrians and one motorcyclist. Batson said the TTPS wanted to target schools in its road safety campaign as it believes the much needed behavioural changes in society can be done before young people become drivers.
He said simple steps like teaching children to cross the road safely and making them advocate against drunk driving should be effective for the future.
Statistics from 2016 showed people between ages 15-25 were the leading category in road traffic deaths with the age group 25 to 35 following. Together, he said, that accounted for almost 40 per cent of road traffic deaths in T&T. He said drunk driving was prevalent between ages 30-50 with managers to labourers being arrested for the offence.
Batson added: “The message the TTPS wants to send is to please engage us. We have voluntary breath testing stations. We go outside the fetes to try to warn the persons before to check their limits so we don’t actually have to arrest them.
“We are asking party workers, before you serve people alcohol, if they are looking like they had too much, don’t serve them anymore. Of course if they paid an all-inclusive price, it is their right to drink as much as they want.
“What I want to warn people is that if you choose to drink and drive, the DUI Task Force will be out there to deal with you. There is no ticket for the offence, remember there is arrest without warrant so you will be going to jail.”