CONCERNS over the death toll on the roads have stirred government officials up to the highest level, with President Tassos Papadopoulos instructing a special meeting with top representatives today on how to tackle the problem.
Some 75 people have been killed in traffic accidents so far this year, with a spate of deaths in the past week.
Justice Minister Doros Theodorou said earlier this week the problem has now elevated beyond mere police concerns with the President himself calling on officials to find solutions.
“Any decisions made at the meeting will be acted upon immediately because the situation has now reached the point where this cannot go on. Everybody involved will now have to take responsibilities if we want to win this battle – and it is a battle because of the large amount of victims involved.”
Theodorou also blasted what he called “comical” fines given by the courts to motorists involved in traffic violations saying that people involved in the fining of the violators were not using the correct mentality.
“We cannot face these kind of violations under the prism of leniency shaking them off as simply minor offences.”
With traffic accidents on the rise, Theodorou also pointed out the need to focus on schools and education.
“More educating needs to be done regarding road regulations in schools by teachers and law enforcement officers. We cannot expect results with just a handful of police officials visiting schools once maybe twice a year to discuss various matters in road safety.”
Barry Faulkner – a former Police Driving Instructor from the United Kingdom – is currently an examiner at the Road Safety and Advanced Driving Society in Cyprus (ROADS). He also believes that educating youngsters is a positive way to cut down the number of road accidents. “Obviously, the earlier you catch them the better and this a positive step towards educating people about driving, especially most Cypriots who unfortunately have little perception of danger when driving.”
Asked about what solutions he believed could be introduced, Faulkner said: ”I believe one of the problems here is the fact that a lot of the offences here in Cyprus are not reported enough by civilians, like for example speeding motorists on a main road. People should report drivers that are speeding constantly on the same road and the police could catch them with mobile speed cameras. The introduction of speed cameras on various roads and traffic lights – though unfortunately expensive – would also help.”
