Jamaica Records Highest Number Of Road Fatalities in 2021

Jamaica has reportedly recorded the most road fatalities this year since 1993 when the numbers first surged over 400. According to the numbers given by Dr. Lucien Jones, Vice Chairman of the National Road Safety Council, the lowest number of road fatalities was recorded in the year 2012 with a low of 260 and since then he claimed the (NRSC) has been putting measures in place to keep road tragedies at a low.

In 2013 however, things took a turn as road fatalities began to rise, with an eclipsing number of 453 cases for this year, which is 20 more than 2020.

According to Dr. Jones, the main causes of road fatalities range from speeding, bad roads, unsafe vehicles as well as road users operating under the influence of alcohol or marijuana as well as circumstances that arise from the use of a cellphone while driving or the nonusage of the seat belt.

In the low road fatality year of 2013, 41 motorcycles were reported to be involved in tragic crashes that caused the loss of life while, as it relates to 2021, 150 of those occurrences have already happened.

Where these motorcycle incidents are concerned, Dr. Jones stated too that a lot of the time persons who are involved in accidents are usually unlicensed and untrained, even driving motorcycles at times that are not safe.

Moving forward, however, Jones mentioned while being interviewed by TVJ, that his organization has a series of programs to help tackle the situation but the chairman has made it clear that nothing is possible unless the Government chips in, and look into their current Road Traffic Act and its inconsistencies as it relates to traffic lights and the ticketing system is concerned. 

Learn more from the video report below.