Just four days after the tragic death of 24-year-old Justin Scott, an MP will today push for new laws to cut the horrific road toll in the Bahamas.
Mr Pierre Dupuchﾴs timely move in the House of Assembly will include reference to the ﾓgraduated drivers programmeﾔ which has been introduced successfully in many states in the US, slashing teen deaths by up to 60 per cent in some cases.
The death of Mr Scott early Saturday morning was the countryﾴs 11th road fatality of the year – and most of the victims have been males under 25. Now Mr Dupuch wants action to curb the slaughter.
The former Cabinet minister will call for a committee to investigate all aspects of the road toll.
He wants the committee to summon evidence from a wide range of the community and present its report within six months.
Tragedy
His motion was listed before Mr Scottﾴs death at the weekend. But the latest tragedy will give it extra force at todayﾴs meeting, during which the government is expected to offer its support.
Mr Scott died instantly when his Toyota sports car struck a median near Sandyport bridge, went into a spin and collided with a casuarina tree. The car was a write-off.
Family said he and friends had enjoyed a night out and hired a limousine to take them to a friendﾴs home at Bayroc on Cable Beach.
But Mr Scott then set off in his own car for his fatherﾴs home at Caves Point. He didnﾴt make it.
Yesterday, Mr Dupuch said parents needed the backing of the law in trying to keep their children safe. Very often they found themselves trying to impose curfews and other restrictions in the face of strong opposition from their children.
Although he accepted that Mr Scott was older than most young road victims, he said: ﾓI think the law should be changed to buttress parents.
ﾓWe have to be stricter in our driving rules. And I think the graduated driving programmes in the States could be the way forward.ﾔ
These programmes, which impose graduated restrictions on new drivers, enabling them to progress to a full licence over a period of years, have proved highly successful in some states.
In the early stages, teenage drivers would be allowed on the roads only at certain times of the day. After fulfilling certain criteria over a given period, drivers would be allowed to graduate to the next level.
Mr Dupuch said children sometimes had to be protected against themselves. ﾓThey are no different from the way we were at the same age, except now they are exposed to killing machines,ﾔ he said.
He said his committee, if approved, would call on police, parents, doctors and others to get ﾓa wide spectrum of adviceﾔ.
ﾓI hope it will come up with recommendations which the government can then translate into law,ﾔ he said.
ﾓThere is a whole pile of things to be considered, including drink and its effect on drivers.
ﾓWe have to tighten up on a lot of things and get school programmes started to show children to consequences of road accidents.ﾔ
Of the graduate driving scheme, he said: ﾓThis is not New York and it is not necessarily the right thing here, and if we find something better we should look at it. I am going into this with an open mind. Nothing is set in concrete.ﾔ
But he said the current road toll was ﾓunacceptableﾔ. Every parent of teens and twenties were concerned about the senseless loss of young life, he added.
Mr Dupuch hoped the committeeﾴs remit would also include checks with nightclub owners regarding policies on serving liquor to young people, and the possible use of breathalyser equipment by police.
Killed
Expected to be in the House for todayﾴs meeting is Mr Brent Fox, whose daughter Vanessa was killed in East Bay Street when an SUV crashed into a wall, severely injuring two of her friends.
Again, the crash happened in the early hours while the group were returning home from a party.
Mr Scottﾴs death was the latest in a string of horror crashes involving young people since the beginning of the year. Several victims have been motor-cyclists in their teens and early twenties.
Police have urged young drivers and riders to curb their speed. They say most crashes involve under-25s and take place during the early hours of the morning.
The Tribune
