By Andre Bagoo Saturday, August 29 2009

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Not for passengers: A panel van, at left, is driven through the traffic at the Cipriani roundabout, Independence Square, Port-of-Spain yesterday. Pane...

ACTING Transport Commissioner Ruben Cato yesterday warned that panel vans that are used as unofficial maxi-taxis across the county are not licensed to do so and pose a serious threat to human life.

Speaking with Newsday after a Training & Logistics breakfast forum on safety at the Marriot Courtyard Hotel, Port-of-Spain, Cato noted that panel vans are not designed to carry passengers commercially.

“My concern is that these TH panel vans, the plain vehicles that are similar to maxi-taxis that are carrying passengers and working as PH taxis, these vans are not registered to carry passengers,” Cato said.

“I actually want to warn members of the travelling public that these vans are not registered to carry persons. They should not be carrying additional persons, you have to get permission from the Transport Commission for that,” he said.

Cato noted that the practice of passengers being carried in such vans is becoming too prevalent.

“There are a whole host of them on the north coast and in rural areas so I want to caution the travelling public not to use these vehicles as a means of public transportation,” he said.

Cato’s comments came two weeks after five people died in a vehicle collision on the way to a cricket match on the South Trunk Road, La Romaine. That collision involved a panel van.

Cato also yesterday urged the Government to take steps to implement breathalyser laws, arguing that they can save lives. “I think we need to change behaviour,” he said.

“And it’s not going to have an impact unless the consequences are severe. And actually enforcement is 24/7. It cannot be sporadic, it has to be consistent. I am very optimistic that the legislation should come into force before the end of the year.

I know the ministry is working assiduously with bringing that measure into place,” he said.

Visiting president of the United States International Safety Council, Roger Marks, speaking after the same event yesterday argued that breathalyser laws are essential.

“I think it’s a necessity,” he said. “All of our law enforcement people use breathalysers, they are able to measure accurate levels of alcohol and to provide the factual info you need to go into court to get a conviction of someone.

“When you have fatalities while someone was drunk driving, that breathalyser test becomes very compelling with a judge and a jury. We’ve have this in place for years,” he said. Marks called for a change in culture in order to foster safety.