DRIVING IN JAMAICA NEW RULES FOR 2019: What visitors and locals must know about using the roads

It has taken four long years but Jamaica is soon to have a new set of laws governing driving in Jamaica and the use of its roads  – the first time since 1938 that its outdated Traffic Act has been repealed. Both Houses of Parliament have finally voted their approval and the new Act will become law once it has been signed by the Governor General and Gazzeted.

Even then it will take another three months or so (March-April)  before it actually takes effect while the Regulations governing its implementation are being formulated but when it does, life for drivers is going to be very different and very costly if they commit an offense.

During these three or so months before the new law and its regulations come into force, Jamaicans and those living abroad especially, would do well to inform themselves of what is new and different in the law.

The Act does not contain all that many new laws. What is significantly different is the scale of the fines and penalties that are to be levied for infractions and the increased burden placed on owners of vehicles, as distinct from, and in addition to actual drivers who do not comply with the law.

 In other areas, the new laws broaden, extend and serve to tighten up on existing regulations. For example the current requirement is for the driver to be held liable if a passenger rides in the front seat without wearing a seat belt. Under the new law it is stated that :

“The driver of a motor vehicle shall cause every passenger who is being conveyed in the vehicle to wear a seat belt.” This includes passengers in the back seat of the vehicle. The driver of the vehicle who does not ensure that the passenger or passengers are wearing seat belts or that a child being carried wears a child restraint system is subject to an automatic fine of $2-5,000.

Similarly, an important variation of the new law relates to having your driver’s license available for presentation. Under the existing practice, drivers are given up to 3 days to produce their driver’s license at the nearest police station if they do not have it with them when accosted by the police. However, under the revised law a driver will face prosecution and a fine if he/she is unable to present a license or permit on the spot.

Failure to produce a permit or driver’s license for examination by the constable in accordance with the Act – $10,000!

 WHAT IS NEW IN THE LAW

One completely new provision outlaws the use of hand-held devices when driving. The law reads as follows;

“A person shall not drive or operate a vehicle on a road while using an electronic communication device [like a cell phone] whether holding in one hand or both hands or with any other part of the body or otherwise, unless the electronic communication device:

• is attached to them or is part of a fixture on the vehicle and remains affixed while being used or operated or:
• is specially adapted or designed to be affixed to the person of the driver or operator as a hands-free device and issued to enable the driver or operator to use or operate the electronic communication device without holding it.”

Jamaicans who live overseas or those from home who travel to the US, Canada and the UK should have no problem adapting to this requirement as this particular rule exists and is strictly enforced in those countries.  In many respects, virtually all the so-called ‘new’ rules are simply bringing Jamaican road use laws and practices in line with those that exist in more developed countries and with which our visitor shave to comply on a daily basis.

A new element in the law which has been the subject of some controversy and even protest on the part of owners of taxis, is the provision that the owner of a vehicle can be held responsible in cases where it is being driven by someone else and an offense is captured electronically. This will come as no surprise for Jamaicans living in foreign as in many countries vehicle owners receive tickets in the mail when their vehicle is captured on camera with the driver committing an offense. The reason why the burden is on the vehicle owner is that the camera only captures and identifies the vehicle. It therefore follows that only the documented owner can be pursued and not the actual individual who may have been driving the vehicle.

 Awareness of owner responsibility and liability is especially important for those Jamaicans who live abroad but own a car or cars which they leave with relatives or friends to be used when they visit but which is also used when they are not in Jamaica. The new law while penalizing the persons who commit infractions while driving a vehicle, also places the burden of compliance with the law on owners. It will become the owner’s responsibility to ensure the his/or her vehicle is properly insured, licensed and being driven for the purpose for which it is licensed, but also to ensure that the person to whom they have entrusted the vehicle is properly licensed and has no unpaid tickets in his/her own name. Visiting Jamaicans should also be cautious when entering informal arrangements to rent vehicles to ensure that the vehicle is in compliance with the law in respect of its road fitness, insurance,registration and license fees.

Given the marked levels of indiscipline among drivers on our roads, the proposed new laws have been generally welcomed by Jamaicans as is reflected in the broad bi-partisan support that has been given to the Act through all its legislative stages. While most drivers agree that heftier fines have the potential to encourage compliance with the law the overwhelming concern is the level of the new fines. Drivers will have to dig deep into their pockets to pay some of these fines or otherwise face the prospect of serving jail time as they can now be imprisoned for many offenses where under the existing law only a fine was applicable. Jail time can range from a low of 15 days to a high of 30 days depending on the severity of the offense. Here is a sample of infractions and related fines (in J$):

READ A TRUE STORY

Some 12 hours after uploading this article, the author happened to set out on a scheduled and unrelated return trip from Kingston to Lluidas Vale in St Catherine –a mere 115 kilometres both ways. On committing his first infraction by making a left turn onto a major road without giving any signal, his traveling companion who knew his driving habits, vowed to keep a mental record of every infraction he committed on the journey. On returning to Kingston, she revealed that he had broken no fewer than FIFTEEN road laws including:

• failing to give the appropriate signal when turning;
• exercising poor judgement/failing to stop at amber lights, which effectively meant failing to obey the red light
• exceeding the speed limit on more than one occasion.

Our author/driver was painfully aware because in exceeding the speed limit on a section of the North Coast highway he had been slapped with a ticket, carrying a J$7,500 fine under the existing rates!

What should be a sobering thought for him and for every driver reading this article is that had he been caught committing these offenses on all or even some of the fifteen occasions, under the new Act and the attendant set penalties, he would have been facing fines well in excess of J$100,000 on a single trip! Our author did not set out to deliberately disobey the rules of the road, and indeed was unconscious of many of his infractions (except for the speeding and beating of the red light) but was the victim of many years of poor driving habits, a malady suffered by many Jamaican drivers.

See Also: BE CAREFUL, NOT FEARFUL: ADVICE TO RETURNING RESIDENTS AND VISITORS