Over 600 road crashes since the beginning of 2024
(CNS): The Cayman Island has recorded over 600 motor vehicle collisions since the start of the year, according to statistics from the 911 call centre. This is an average of 50 crashes per week but does not include unreported crashes, making a terrible start to 2024. Despite the warnings, safety campaigns and roadblocks, drivers are still speeding, driving while drunk and using phones behind the wheel, which are the key factors causing crashes across the islands. The National Road Safety Committee (NRSC) has called for urgent action and the redoubling of efforts by drivers to reduce collisions.
After two drivers were killed and two road workers struck by a speeding car within a week, NRSC Chairperson Eric Bush, the chief officer of the Ministry of Infrastructure, called for everyone to make a commitment to safe driving practices and “cultivate a culture of respect, mindfulness and care on our roads”.
Offering condolences to the families of the deceased and noting that every road death is one too many, the committee urged drivers to slow down and to take the road safety pledge. “Let us honour the memory of those we have lost by ensuring that such incidents do not recur. Together, we truly can save lives and make a difference.”
By taking the pledge, drivers, pedestrians, and passengers agree to drive responsibly, stay vigilant, educate others and respect the road.
“These tragic deaths were entirely avoidable,” Bush stated in a press release “Each loss is devastating and leaves an irreplaceable void in families, communities and society at large. We cannot afford to overlook the gravity of this situation. It is imperative that we all take proactive measures to ensure road safety for ourselves and those around us.”
He said that meaningful change will only be brought about through community support and having no tolerance for this type of behaviour.
The National Road Safety Committee is actively working with the private and public sectors as well as community groups to reduce road fatalities and reckless driving.
Taking the pledge and support the Road to Zero campaign here.
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Category: Local News
Owning a driving license is a privilege not a right. 600 road accidents should scream out to the authorities that either the wrong people have licenses or that they are way too easy to obtain. Overhaul the theory test and you would immediately get rid of the thousands of drivers who are given licenses each year but are unable to read or write English.
50 A week. Watch as it just gets worst because that’s what happens when nothing changes. Police enforcement is as good as it will ever get and we all know this. Too many drivers with no self respect and no respect for anyone else’s life. Here in Cayman if you’re on the road, you’re just in the way of they who follow no laws.
Everyone knows you can just buy your license in Jamaica. Stop allowing Jamaican’s to come here and get a Cayman license on the strength of the worthless Jamaican one.
Better than that just stop them from coming here far better option!
In fairness, before paying the JMD$1800/USD$11.71, applicants must both pass the 20 multiple choice questions, and operate the car in the yard.
https://mtm.gov.jm/press/persons-reminded-of-the-drivers-licence-process/
Bring in the Demerit points system.
!2 points you lose your license for 3 months.
Some examples
Unsecured child 9
Mobile phone or no seat belt 4
10 – 20 mph over 3 points
25-34mph over speed limit 3 months
35-44mph over speed limit 6 months
over that 12 months
Fines should be income based as well.
6 months
–
more than 45kmh over the speed limit
12 months
–
130kmh to 134kmh in 110kmh zone
3 months
–
Driving at a dangerous speed
6 or 12 months
too much for our lazy civil servants to set-up and sort out
Jamaican driving licenses should not be accepted for a start. They aren’t in the UK. Then they need uk driving instructors to teach and enforce caymanians to take a uk driving test here.
I will never understand the locals here indicating right when going straight on at a roundabout. Possible the most stupid thing I’ve ever seen.
Fully agree with you. It is both residents and locals, however.
IDK, maybe they changed their mind. There’s plenty more stupid. More importantly: let’s celebrate and cheer on the rarity of any motorists that can both locate and operate the mysterious signal stalk. Hallelujah to that.
We follow a uk Highway Code and road system largely. Make everyone take a uk standard practical and theory driving test, would take a third of the traffic and worst drivers off the road instantly. The driving standard here are third world for some. Lack of indicating at roundabouts is shocking and should result in fines and bans.
solution 1:
strictly enforce Lane discipline. punish “undertaking” (passing on the left) as dangerous driving, same as in UK.
solution 2:
from records,identify what nationalities are involved in most avoidable crashes, and remove the right to exchange for a Cayman license. Lots of people blame Jamaicans or Indians, so let’s see the stats, and see if it’s true. If so, follow UK example and make them take a full local test.
solution 3:
empower a police watchdog to raise standards of enforcement and transparency. Laws without effective enforcement are meaningless.
Sorry, but solution 1 is not applicable. There are so many people driving much slower than the posted speed in the right lane that we have no choice but to overtake them in the left lane. I’m simply not going to let a dangerously slow driver dictate the flow of traffic.
Cue the racist. Glad you’re not in charge.
As Cayman develops and grows, let’s blame other countries (Jamaica) for all the pains and thank other countries (US, UK, Canada) for the positives. Caymanians play no part in any of it, right?
An unprecedented and all round shambles. Too many people here now. Immigration needs to tighten up and stop letting people get PR and status so easily.
Pal, plenty people of all sorts, including Caymanians driving like selfish jersks daily.
Cayman drivers License are too cheap (175 $ for 10 years for crying out loud) Not sure about Grand that’s the Brac. Should be 175 $ per year and the drivers test are to easy to pass.
If you think it’s easy than you never went through the process. The problem is Macs status grants that gave a majority to the one countrymen where the driving standards are piss poor. The other problem is zero traffic police doing their job. They come from that same country and don’t even follow the laws they are meant to enforce. But it’s not just expats turned status holders who are bring down this country, look at the locals who are turning areas that were once nice into slums by converting houses into 17 bedroom accomodations. Look at the yards without any care of pride of their home. Look at the children with 12 other half siblings. This country is going downhill if you don’t elect people who are worthy and who won’t overturn an election for their own personal grift factory.
Simple fix,
Caymanians can have a vehicle, expats can’t, especially those that I know have 4+ cars..
Improve our public transport for those expat workers.
For those that can afford it can get a private driver (Caymanian).
This should have been done years ago.
lol. Delusional much?
Do tell us how 1 person can drive multiple cars at the same time.
It’s the caymanians that are the worst drivers and the expats that create the money that pays for the roads!
That has to be one of the worst suggestions I have read for this issue. The lack of logic is very disappointing, but hey – this is Cayman, and Cayman logic to usually blame expats for the lack of leadership from the ill-educated Ministers elected by the ill-educated electorate.
Why would I want a Caymanian driver when it’s pretty much only you guys killing yourselves on the roads?
What a lovely racist comment …
What a stupid suggestion. Caymanians are speeding down the road wrecking just as much if not more than expats.
How does this even add up, when you can literally take the local driving test as a total moron?
lol
a by-product of rcips not enforcing basic rules of the road.
free simple solutions to terrible driving standards:
1. as per the uk, do not accept jamaican driving license
2. if you cause an accident or get charged with careless driving , you must automatically re-sit driving test
3. treble all speed/dangerous driving fines
What do you bass this on?
Drivers and lack of enforcement. That’s it.
there are awful drivers all over the world, same as here. But there are much strong enforcements of existing laws all over the world (not everywhere), certainly not here.
someone wrote that drving now is automatically a defensive effort. It’s true. it is terrifying driving most of the bypass roads at night. In the morning school run, it’s frightening trying to pull onto a bypass or off it.
Roundabouts would usually entail a natural sense of caution for a driver, but here it often seems to present a challenge for many to find the straightest possible ‘racing’ line thru it without giving a sh*t to lanes or oncoming cars.
I’d recommend multiple efforts at curtailing the accidents and improving driving standards, there’s nothing genius about them:
reduce the speed limits to 30 on every single bypass and even the roads b/n BT and EE and NS. Cry all you want, we’ve brought it on ourselves and anyhow if you pay attention, the cars whizzing past on the under or outside lane you always end up meeting a few roundabouts ahead.
speed cameras. Everywhere.
raise the price of gas – add $5 a gallon, and take all $5 and put them towards education and health. It will reduce the number of vehicles on the roads; it will cause people to slow down to save gas; etc.
Zero tolerance for speeding – licence gone for 12 months.
Prison for drink driving and high driving.
Prison for driving uninsured. $10,000 fine for driving with tinted windows.
Nobody cares about the laws because they’re not enforced and they’re not penal.
Change it.
And lets do something similar for company owners that provide landscapers with leaf blowers
if you find our road frightening maybe you’re part of the problem. Yes the number of crashes is ridiculous but frightening? Get a grip.
Idiotic bunch of miserable ideas. The elephant in the room is our complete joke of a driving test.
Actually it’s not that. It’s that a pervasive plague of everyone not giving a damn about anyone but themselves.
So nothing to do with the fact we give licenses to people who simply can’t drive then. I guess you’re one of them.
Dared to take a drive to Savannnah and to Seafarers late this evening. Met tourists driving down the wrong side of South Sound Road, multiple cars not only parked on double yellows at Bacadere, with a few half in the roadway, a Mercedes Benz driver with the phone in her face, and a car with no taillights.
What did I not see?
Any RCIPS. Easter campaign, LMAO.
The Bacadere beach parking disaster was at an all-time worst today. Multiple vehicles parked on the double yellow lines and several parked in ways that took up half of the narrow two lane road.
No RCIPS. Just an absolute free-for-all. If the police are not going to enforce the simple no parking on double yellows, why not remove them?
It’s not as if anyone will follow laws that aren’t enforced.
There is a madman who drives at very high speed and noisy past the straightaway along our house at least twice a day. The police have been notified, even been given his licence number.
I don’t wish him harm, but I do hope if he causes harm it happens only to himself. It probably won’t happen that way, but I think severe damage to somebody is inevitable.
Meanwhile, we all shake our heads sadly when he roars by, wishing for the sound of his engine blowing.
What a load of nonsense. It’s pretty obvious that you are simply scared of driving.
Daily reminder to not indicate right when going straight at a roundabout! You aren’t being polite, you are confusing other drivers.
100% wrong.
you must always indicate when leaving a roundabout. simple rules for roundabout..indicate when entering, when on and when leaving.
yikes…this poster just stated facts and he gets blasted with thumbs down….
welcome to wonderland
because they are wrong. you indicate when entering a roundabout, left to show you’re going left, right to show you’re going right and NOTHING to show you’re going straight on. then indicate left when you reach your exit. so turning left indicate left the whole way, straight on nothing then left, right indicate right then left to exit. Very simple.
poster is wrong. as apparently are you. shouldn’t indicate to go straight on. what sense is that? just to leave.
Dear god
Indications when turning helps instruct other drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists/scooterists, on WTF your steel cage is about to do, both those behind and up ahead. The sentience to know that there is such a thing as an indicator stalk is so rare a miracle that we should celebrate it, even if it’s wrong.
the chief officer of the Ministry of Infrastructure, called for everyone to make a commitment to safe driving practices and “cultivate a culture of respect, mindfulness and care on our roads”.
How profound! What a difference this will make.
Instead of empty words, why not take action. It’s obvious that without a deterrent the bad behaviors on our roads will continue. We claim to have hundreds of police but their visibility is well below expectations for that number. I would expect them to have a consistent presence in problem areas and to use their visibility and ticketing to reduce violations. I have very low confidence in their competence but just being present is achievable by them.
Until authorities decide to take actions we will face growing amounts of violations and careless collisions.
The poor driving standards start with the crappy driving instructors. I have witnessed learner driver being instructed to indicate right whilst sat I the left lane approaching onto roundabout. They were going straight on at the roundabout and were being taught to position left, indicate right and then indicate left once passing the first exit. This is not how you indicate to go straight on and it is not in the Road Code. Who licenses these Driving Instructors to teach? Shouldn’t there be some quality control? How can we expect to reduce the number of accidents when drivers are being taught the wrong thing ?
I’ve witnessed the exact same, moronic thing. The test is also garbage. I know a few kids who passed after just 2 lessons with their parents. This is insane.
Condolences to the families affected.
It’s disheartening to witness the continued surge in road fatalities despite the government’s efforts to promote safe driving through pledges. It’s evident that merely taking a pledge isn’t enough; we need tangible measures to address the issue.
Lowering speed limits, installing speed cameras, and implementing instant fines are crucial steps towards fostering safer roads. These measures not only act as deterrents but also serve as reminders for drivers to adhere to traffic regulations.
The Department of Vehicle and Licensing (DVLD) in conjunction with the RCIPS needs to ensure that non-compliant vehicles are promptly removed from the roads. This enhances safety and promotes accountability among vehicle owners.
Such measures highlighted in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia where the government’s approach to comprehensive strategies that encompass enforcement, education, and infrastructure improvements are essential in curbing road casualties. We really have to adopt a similar approach and prioritize the safety of citizens on the roads.
https://www.transport.gov.scot/news/ministerial-statement-on-reported-road-casualties-statistics-2022/#:~:text=That%20is%20why%20the%20Scottish,areas%20in%20communities%20across%20Scotland.
Absolute garbage. Our limits are low enough. The idiots aren’t killing themselves at 40mph. The point is we don’t have any kind of meaningful test. Scottish stats are irrelevant.
See now Jimmy
Thwack!
The writing is on the wall of shame and it has been blatantly obvious for al least a decade. Why no action, why no stiffer penalties, why no persistent and comprehensive enforcement of traffic laws? Our system of enforcement and road users is diluted with those simply have no respect for the law and other road users whatsoever, and that includes many in the ranks of the RCIPS.
Question is do these enforcers have a vested interest in improving the situation or even recognise an infraction if and when they see one. Do they have motivation to pursue and penalise an offender, who is measuring their job performance?
Back in the old days it was rather easy to know who everyone was just by their plate number, one wonders if some traffic officers are still in the business of turning a blind eye because it maybe one of their countrymen breaking the law?
Either way, the situation is getting exponentially worse year by year and personal risk and insurance rates are increasing, something has to change, its a virtual warzone out their on the roads.
Averaging 13 road fatalities annually per 100K population we don’t have the worst road fatality record in the Caribbean like Belize and Guyana with 23 and 22 respectively the trend is rising at an alarming rate. As compared to Jamaica at 15 we are comparable. But compared to UK and Europe we are not. UK is ranked 5th lowest fatalities at 2.6 per 100K annually. So it appears we have a long way to go in order to reverse this dangerous trend.
The example starts at the top with our leaders, if they themselves break the law and get away with it how can they or the COP realistically expect casual traffic law offenders to have any respect for the rule of law.
See some of the stats I’ve referenced below:
https://www.caymancompass.com/2023/11/20/national-road-safety-plan-aims-to-eliminate-road-deaths-by-2038/#:~:text=However%2C%20it%20is%20significantly%20higher,per%20100%2C000%20in%20North%20America.
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_953
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/reported-road-casualties-great-britain-annual-report-2022/reported-road-casualties-great-britain-annual-report-2022#:~:text=In%20reported%20road%20collisions%20in,of%2012%25%20compared%20to%202019
Comparing death and injury stats per capita makes Cayman look good because we dont drive very far or very fast. Do it per mile driven and we look even worse!
Yes, agree 10x worse.
Correct! 5x worse per capita. 10x worse per mile driven.
A pledge? Really? That’s the answer to this? How utterly ridiculous.
Eric Bush, as Chair of the Road Safety Committee / Council, and as a Special Constable yourself, all you can say is you hope ppl drive better??!! What a useless specimen.
Why dont you get off your ass and recommend higher penalties for DUIs, speeding near roadworks zones, and general reckless driving? The higher penalties may act as deterrents to the anti-social driving behaviours.
A lot of ppl are commenting that the problem is drivers, not roads or cars. So triple the fines and quadruple the jail time for these speeding, reckless and drunken drivers.
Also, no one should be above the law, not Rolston nor Dwayne. All should be held to account by a Court of Law.
600 crashes in 3 months on flat land without any snow? WOW!
The real problem is the police, or more specifically the traffic department. But I suspect that ultimately it’s not their fault either: they are chronically underfunded and treated as the orphan sister of the more ‘glamorous’ departments of the RCIPS, even though they have to deal with the cause of the largest number of fatalities on the island behind natural causes.
I do agree though that for the Road Safety Committee and Mr Bush to wring their hands and implore people to drive safer is worse than useless. The police need to exercise zero tolerance of traffic offenses, the authorities have to get tough, really tough, and the MPs need to introduce sanctions which hurt – and regardless of the effect they’ll have on their election chances. A friend suggested immediate confiscation of phones used in cars. That would get everyone’s attention.
But we’ve said all this time and again until we’re blue in the face, and nobody takes any notice. They think they know better, even while the deaths and injuries mount up.
There is nothing RCIPS can realistically do when DVDL give licenses to people who can’t drive.
Then, what purpose does the traffic divison serve then?
I live partially in Ohio (USA) and Cayman (an expat to Cayman since 1987). We have in our county a bit less that 100,000 registered citizens, and 23,000 registered drivers. 2023 annual driving accidents = 1,230 = 102/month with 10x the roadways vs Cayman. Cayman is a HUGE more driving risk.
Cayman… you are a mess and have no clue how to get out of it. You better enlist expats to fix your mess. Your braintrust is at a 2’nd grade education and your electorate is at a 1’st grade education.
No worries for me; we came in 1984, will be leaving next year for other shores with sand beaches, stable educated governments, and far less violence. Glad for me to be gone??? Temper your glee as the best you had will now be leaving in the next few years.
Bye. Be careful what you wish for.
Over the course of last weekend I had to take evasive manoeuvres on six separate occasions to avoid crashing into people who pulled out in front of me.
They all looked Jamaican.
So they looked like Caymanians…
Thanks, McKeeva!
Since the multi-million dollar camera system and RCIPS is as the kids say, mid, why not make admissable in traffic courts safely taken citizen video submissions of lawbreakers?
Offer financial rewards for submissions of lawlessness. We pay for the indiscriminate murders of green iguanas, so why not do this?
Put these lawbreakers on blast. Make them famous.
Bet you find every nationality is breaking the laws.
Boating on North Sound, I have to take evasive maneuver’s several times each outing.
New or careless boaters unaware they have to yield to a vessel to their right/starboard side.
I would have said as bad as the roads, except the marine navigation environment is far more dangerous when you are dealing with a 30 foot boat that weight 4 ton.
Oh dear. Boating mishaps. Pass me the shaker, Lovey, my glass is nearly dry.
Pretty racist comment since you have no way to verify what you are assuming. Bad drivers come from many countries – even Cayman!
I just followed an RCIPS car through the 25mph road construction zone headed East on Thursday, March 28 at 12:40pm. The vehicle was travelling at 44mph then sped up to 50 mph when we reached the actual 40mph zone.
No use of indicators through the first, second or third roundabouts.
How do the authorities expect better driving if they set such a bad example?
….By giving way to traffic at a stop sign on a side road. You are not being polite, you are causing a massive a traffic jam behind you. Oh and turn on your lights at night.
I agree with this. However. Stop signs have no place in cayman. Put a mini roundabout or light.
Yeah, but not your effin high beams.
A major problem is slow traffic in the fast lane on dual carraigeways. Many lorries are doing this as well as tourists in their Honda Fits. It would help if NRA placed signs Slower Traffic to the left lane. It might also reduce the cowboys in their race to change lanes.
Defensive driving is mandatory these days.
That’s where all the rough drivers in Cayman get it so wrong. There is no fast and slow lane on our 40mph dual carriageways. If one’s doing 50mph, they get tailgated and flashed. 40 is the current limit, let’s stick to it, until we build a motorcade for the Government to see.
Regardless of what the speeders want to drive, stay in the left lane unless you want to go faster. Pretty simple, yeah?
Slow lane signs are a MUST. Some say the slower lane is the right lane, not the left! Who’s right? Signs please. Yes! Signs please!
The Cayman Road Code is perfectly clear that you should only use the right lane for overtaking or preparing to turn right, otherwise you should return to the left lane ASAP! You should know this if you have a driving license
Page 19
https://www.dvdl.gov.ky/documents/Road-Code-2012-1-2021-02-25-02-10-56.pdf
“Use the right-hand lane for overtaking or turning right. As soon as
practicable after overtaking, you are to move back to the left lane”
HOW HARD CAN IT BE?
If you don’t know this basic road rule you shouldn’t be driving! Right lane is for overtaking. If only there was some way of finding out this basic information. They could put it in a book and call it something easy to Google like Cayman Road Code. wow.
Slow Lane Signs are a MUST! Such a simple step to take. But, Chris Johnson, many people believe the slow lane is the right lane, not the left. Who’s correct???
maybe read the Highway code?
Seriously? How did you pass the driving test?
Slow lane is the left!
Worldwide when vehicles drive on the right hand side of the road the slow lane is on the left.
huh? In Cayman, like the UK, we drive on the left and the overtaking lane is (supposed) to be on the right. Most of the world drives on the right and the overtaking lane is on the left. Both systems should be obvious to any vaguely competent driver given where slower traffic typically merges from. The US is a bit of a mess with regards over and undertaking but their accident stats are also far worse than other 1st world countries too.
Certainly not true anywhere in Europe. Where do you believe this is the case?
Agreed, the fun part is when you have a cement truck and dump truck full of marl side by side on the ETH going 20 mph.
Tourists are used to the slow lane being the right lane. Signage may be helpful.
Taxis in the outside (right) lane too. MOVE OVER! You drive for a living. Take some damn pride in your driving.
Ludacris said it best
when will NRA put signs up warning the idiots that don’t know the right lane is for passing, if you’re not passing – move to the left. This may avoid cars diverting in and out of lanes and causing accidents.
We should not need signs. IT IS IN THE ROAD CODE. Everyone with a license should know this. Failure to use the multilane roads this way should result in a ticket. Assuming the rcips officers actually know this.
You’re absolutely correct but no RCiPS, event Traffic don’t know, or care.
Thank you for not calling them accidents, as they can no longer be defined as such.
Mo’ Jamaicans mo’ problems
Mo’ scapegoats used to give cover to everyone else to break the laws
It is not the road problem or vehicles problem. It is the drivers fault who cannot drive properly. Drivers always have the responsibility to drive and control of the vehicle.
The problem isn’t the roads (which are generally excellent), it isn’t the police, it isn’t even the junk cars, it’s the drivers. Any competent driver will tell you within 10 minutes of arriving in Cayman that the standard of driving is an absolute joke. What exactly does anyone expect; we give licenses to people who shouldn’t have them, who can’t drive safely at any speed and who wouldn’t get a license anywhere else in the developed world.
The police are at fault if they continue to never fine these shite drivers.
Most of them can’t drive either. The only ones who can are the FRU drivers. I followed a traffic car all the way from ALT’s to West Bay. They were in the right hand lane the ENTIRE way for no reason, indicated WRONG at every roundabout and then the perfect ending turned left at Yacht Club, without indicating, from the right hand lane.
In a 15 minutes drive from the airport to SMB yesterday, my family’s taxi driver nearly crashed twice because of not stopping/following the rules of the road at roundabouts.
Thats taxis everywhere.
Also you don’t stop at roundabouts.
Only give way
To put this in context. We are more than twice as bad as the Americans who aren’t very good themselves.
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/legal/car-accident-statistics/
They have 5.25m accidents in 2023 over 340m people so approx 0.015.
Call our rate 2,400 accidents over 80k people so approx 0.03.
I think we all observe horrible driving habits and dangerous anti-social behaviour on our roads every day. Add in poor road design and a culture that tolerates driving after drinking or getting high and it is a recipe for the disaster our roads have become.
We could also talk about unlicensed and uninsured drivers, plus the number of crashes involving stolen vehicles.
There is a lot to clean up and I don’t see anyone with a broom or dustbin.
Agree with everything you say except poor road design. Our roads are generally excellent. As is our weather. Our speeds are generally very low and you’re never more than 10 miles from a hospital and yet despite all that our accident stats and KSI stats are terrible. Forget the US, depending on what stats you look at we are 5-10 times worse than Northern Europe!
The crown on the roads is a joke. Common sense roadbuilders know to crown the paving to drain water.
If our roads were designed properly, we would not get a different set of new plastic guideposts going up somewhere every week. We build roundabouts and then turn them into something else.
The RCIPS Traffic Unit must be scaled-up to match the deference hole. This is a management failure going back decades. The only surprise would be if Kurt actually deployed the appropriate number of officers issuing tickets to grapple our array of conditioned bad drivers under some semblance of control. Like it or not, that’s what police work (their job) should start looking like.
The RCIPS can’t force drivers to drive competently. Half of them don’t even know what lane they are supposed to be in.
Your first three words were enough.
Well, they can continue to fine them! There are ZERO repercussions for bad drivers here. you really have to eff up to get a ticket for anything.
No, no, no. This would be a waste of resource. Put the investment where it is needed – driving standards & education, then, like most European countries, use the established and successful tech (along with policing) to catch offenders and then fully prosecute.
The issue is not the road worthiness of vehicles, or the condition of the roads. This is all about drivers. Are there any statistics? Is some group more involved in accidents than others? Do these accidents occur more at certain places or times? Is a particular cause more prominent? This sort of information could direct us to some sort of remedy and is used elsewhere for the same purpose. But in Cayman all we get is the same thing: drive safely please. That will not get results.
Hundreds -perhaps thousands – of unlicensed and/or disqualified drivers on our roads. They really don’t know how merging, stop signs, or roundabouts work. Some of them brake to stop at empty cross walks and green traffic lights. No idea. Forget wheel stalks and turn signals, they are not sure which pedal is which.
Slowing down for crosswalks on busy days is actually good. We all see people simply push the button and step into the crosswalk without looking in the correct direction.
Could the Royale Cluster JDF Farce kindly explain the nationalities of origin of those responsible for these accidents, and identify if any patterns emerge?
Terrible driving doesn’t have a nationality, but the disqualified and unlicensed might.
Tell that to the people in European countries about the one with the worst driving record – Romania
Our driving test is a joke. At least half the drivers on our roads could not pass a basic UK test. Until we fix the test we will continue to suffer accident rates 10 times worse than the UK.
The roundabouts need to be changed so that the traffic is forced to stop at least 10 to 15 metres away from entering the roundabout. Currently the white lines are drawn two metres away from entering the roundabout. As a result cars coming speeding up to the roundabout and if you’re going around the roundabout you never know if the car approaching from the left will actually stop in time.
No, the drivers are the problem.
CNS story photo should be on the tourism brochures.
If you indicate your intention on the roundabout, people will know when they need to stop. No one should be forced to stop to enter a roundabout, hence why the sign says, “Give Way”, it’s a measure to ensure traffic flows efficiently, otherwise it should just be a junction.
The roundabout by the Lions centre / Tropical Gardens is a nightmare. Indicating makes absolutely no difference, cars going towards GT arrive at high speed with the normal suspects just driving straight through with no regard to cars approaching from the right.
The drivers don’t stop. They don’t understand what the lines are for, on roads. And it’s become a game of chicken to zoom into roundabouts without yielding to cars already in there.
I literally saw a car zoom through the big Camana Bay roundabout at about 60 mph without stopping. Ditto at Hurleys.
We need speed bumps on all entries into roundabouts. Rumble strips and white lines aren’t working.
Obviously 60 is illegal in any event BUT the line on the entrance to a roundabout is a ‘give way’ not a ‘stop’. There is NO requirement to stop if there is no traffic or you can merge safely. Are you one of those people who stops for no reason?
https://www.dvdl.gov.ky/documents/Road-Code-2012-1-2021-02-25-02-10-56.pdf
The problem then is that I need to slow down if there is a car in front of me approaching a clear roundabout as I have no idea whether or not they are looking ahead or if they are going to stop.
Only an idiot would stop on or at a roundabout.
Like the thoudaands of us who are stopped at Grand Harbour, Red Bay, ALT, etc beacuse of the constant flow of traffic?
You need to read the Cayman Road Code but I bet you won’t.
Tourist from US visiting commented that they slow down at round-abouts there, why do drivers here speed up! Funny how so many respond negatively to speedbumps at the round-abouts. They sure will work…make them big like the one in front of BOB downtown!
I’ve seen cars zooming by police cars at twice the speed limit, without any reaction from the police.
Accidents seem to be taking a long time to process because the traffic police are short staffed and often have to attend several accidents in a short time span (rush hours).
Can we please know the traffic police figures: Staff, vehicle number, budget, tickets written, how much rev from fines etc, how many times deployed outside rush hours, where most accidents occur and what age/nationality are involved
If you think it’s the road’s fault I strongly suspect you are part of the problem.
sounds like you need to learn how to use a roundabout!
A better public transport system would help
A public transport system would help.
Doesn’t this tell anyone anything at all then?
Go look at the proficiency test. Exam and practical for gods sake get some competent examiners too
Some simple math (with assumptions that are almost assuredly incorrect, but hopefully not too much).
50 reported accidents per week -> 2,600 accidents in a year (if at the same rate)
Assume 85% are two vehicles, with the rest single-vehicle. That’s 4,810 vehicles in accidents per year.
DVDL reported as of December 2020, there were 67,167 registered vehicles.
If we assume that each vehicle accident is unique (no vehicle that was previously in an accident during the year will be in another in the same year), which is admittedly not going to be the case, that would imply 7% of all vehicles will be in a reported accident this year.
Even allowing for vehicles to be in multiple accidents, but then also considering non-reported accidents, there is a case to be made that an average of 1 in 20 vehicles or so will be in an accident this year.
If we just look at it from an accident per capita basis, we’re somewhere around 0.03, which would place us near the top 5 or so countries in the world.
I would suggest this should give us moment for pause and recognize the imperative to demand and make changes for the better. Whatever it is that we are collectively doing, as drivers, from a policy, legislation, and enforcement perspective – it’s not working.
If the fabled Traffic Dept of unknown staffing and vehicle number, were actually deployed on our roads, with their eyes open, issuing tickets, and offering a visible deterrence service, there would be a LOT less anarchy, opportunistic crime, DUIs, racing, angry driving, and insurance claims. Where are they? Hey Siri, journal a reminder to repeat this comment in 6 months.
This should not be a surprise to anyone. Standard of driving is very poor here, exacerbated by poor traffic law enforcement.
Nonexistent. Line this stat up next to the tickets written.
You’ll find 99% are issued for speeding, with only about 2% for excessive speeding. Never a ticket for not indicating, especially on roundabouts. Parking on the shoulder facing oncoming traffic, driving excessively slow (Hindering the natural flow of traffic), and the list goes on.
Police are too busy investigating stupid accidents to do much else.
Blaming a chronic staffing hole is an unacceptable excuse. Management needs to staff and deploy properly – that is part of the service we are paying for. If not, fire Kurt.
Yes, and certainly augmented by an increase in cars, and drivers who weren’t raised under our traffic rules. I hate to say it, but I will anyway. There seems to be an increase in drivers that just don’t give a crap about our rules.
I think you mean no traffic law enforcement.
600? They are just getting started.
CIG needs to revoke the ability of third parties to do vehicle inspections. It should be DVDL only. I questions all the time how some vehicles are on the road especially heavy truck and unlicenced trailers.
It’s a big leap to suggest these 600 accidents in first quarter are due to defective cars that weren’t inspected thoroughly. More like defective human operators.
Completely disagree. If 3rd party inspectors are fraudulently passing unroadworthy vehicles then they should be prosecuted but there’s no reason why legitimate garages who have just serviced a vehicle and have therefore just done a full inspection shouldn’t be trusted to pass it on behalf of DVDL. There’s no reason to believe a private mechanic is any more likely to pass a friend’s junk car than a DVDL inspector. In fact the mechanic is incentivised to find faults to fix. Lastly if you’re now planning on processing thousands more cars at DVDL expect even more stupid wait times and increased costs.
Step 1. Public transport that is reliable and has routes and schedule that is useful to every segment of society.
Step 2. Revise the traffic law to match that of the UK.
Step 3. Make the driving test significantly more difficult to pass.
Step 4. Require every person to do a full retest every 10 years.
not sure why so many thumb downs for this comment tbh. I too believe public transport revamp is badly needed along with a stringent vehicle licensing mirroring the UK
UK policing ideology is why the RCIPS can’t get a grip on any of their areas of responsibility. “Crime is stable”. Cheers (clinks champagne flutes at Ritz gala).
How about enforcement mirroring the UK?
DVDL needs to be investigated (again) because there is no way this is normal. Obviously people are being given licences when they do not qualify. It is even worse that people that come here don’t have to do the driving test, only the written test. Majority of our imported labour are from 3rd world countries – did you all really expect their driving to be immaculate?
Yes, I’ve always thought the DVDL was a big part of the problem. We also need to stop accepting drivers from Jamaica. Have them take the driving test if they want to drive here!
Those are the worst
There are terrible drivers of all nationalities, unified in the conditioned expectation of absent police deterrence.
If that’s true how many of the dozen or so killed on our roads every year are European or North American? The last ones I can recall were the elderly British couple killed in 2017 by some idiot Jamaican who smashed into them head on.
Roadworthiness/licensing test too. Far too many questionable vehicles and drivers on the road.
Check if they are insured !!!
My insurance company has been offering coverage lately against drivers who are not insured, as it seems to be becoming a problem.
You think Cayman isn’t third world?
Talk your shit all you want but it’s all just noise; we all know you will fight tooth and nail to stay here, and would never set foot in any actual third world countries https://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/third_world.htm
How can we be third world when we have Jon-Jon in charge!
Drivers need to be stopped randomly and screened to see if they hold a valid driver’s license. We used to do this. Often a high percentage doesn’t have one, disqualified for a driving offence (like DUI), never passed, or even ventured to DVDL to book and attend a test. How is DVDL supposed to do the RCIPS’s job?
It might not be that drivers aren’t qualified. It might just be that they don’t care.
No no….we’re just in a rush bro
A pledge, that’ll solve it. LOL
Lemon Pledge would be more effective
Probably give you cancer but still a safer bet than driving on Cayman’s lawless roads.
Why would any of these bad drivers pay any attention to a pledge when the obliviously don’t give a crap about any laws, road codes or just sensible driving habits. Eric Bush just opens his mouth to make himself look good but in all honesty he should just go back to his dark corner, shut-up and keep collecting his fat paycheck. He must have been in the same class as Seymour – useless. None of this will change until they start getting these people off the roads, but the new culture for everything is who cares (including the police), just go with the flow mi brethren!
RCIPS need to spend more time on the road and less time in their air conditioned offices.
Or we could pin the blame squarely where it belongs – on these moronic drivers.
…that hold no reasonable fear of being discovered by a deployed police force as one or more of: disqualified, unlicensed, or drunk.
I do not believe your comment is fair or accurate, as I regularly see police cars patrolling the streets every day while driving to or from work. The police can not be everywhere all of the time. Neither do we want them to be!!! As users of the public road system, we must take reasonable care while driving. I do and can only hope there is a growing number of drivers who also do the same. XXXX
CNS: The XX’ed out bit is because someone has now been arrested in this case.
Think that’s why they wasted million on CCTV
Eric may know something about that!
Fully disagree. With over 400 full-time pay-rolled officers, the public deserves to have much higher expectations, and the frustration has spanned decades is is fully warranted. The promised enforcement is always billed as “coming soon” via some partial “operation” effort. This full-time police job isn’t getting done, and we have the crime and accident stats to prove it.
Patrolling yes, making traffic stops, No.
I agreed although they do spend a lot of time in their air conditioned window tinted cruisers. The windows maybe tinted because there are always minimum of 2 in the vehicle HIDING out.
The RCIP’s may not be speeding but they break as many laws as anyone else not using turn indicators our understand traffic circles. Let’s not forget the pretty Blue and Red lights turned on you can see coming for blocks. Kangaroo COPS comes to mind.
The Fresh Prince of Bel Air said it best.
There’s never any police presence on the road. Start there.
Most, if not all of us have seen laws being broken in plain sight of the rozzers.
Bacadere beach having cars and trucks parking on the double yellows every day of the week, illegally tinted windows, taligaiting, speeding, overtaking on solid line roads, texting and driving, and no indicators.
You bring in police from Jamaica, you bring in Jamaican societal norms. You add teachers, prosecutors, and judges from the same place, and never challenge the core issue (a demographic and power imbalance) and those norms quickly become engraved into our community.
This is NOT what Cayman has stood for. This is not its foundation. It needs to be addressed very soon – before it is too late.
OUR laws need to be enforced at OUR standards.
Keep dreaming because Cayman you describe is long gone, it is now little Kingston and this is just what our wonderful elected leaders want – Jamaica culture; just look at Honorable Seymour and McKeeva Bush. Just utterly pathetic.
I will keep dreaming. THIS is not Cayman and will NEVER be accepted or tolerated by me.
I will keep dreaming also sister.