Let’s face it; the purpose of government’s introduction of the Express Penalty System was not to restore sanity on city roads or to protect city dwellers from errant motorists.
The scheme has a bearing on revenue collections. Surely with all the problems in the city such as potholes, dust, poor drainage, among others, why would the government prioritize the Express Penalty System (EPS) above everything else?
How many patients are going to die in ambulances stuck in traffic jam as a result of EPS that does not discriminate the vehicles that are exempt? How much money will the cars with a right of way pay for bypassing lights without waiting for the green signal? How much money is the taxpayer going to spend replacing cameras that may be damaged?
Clearly, the ministry of Works and Transport did not do enough homework before enrolling this system. We cannot rush to copy Europe where their system used advanced technologies in monitoring, video surveillance, data analytics, timely control systems and communications to ensure the safety of citizens.
In the past, the ministry of Works and Transport attempted to review the Traffic and Road Safety (Speed Limits) Regulations, 2004 allegedly to enable the operationalization of the act, aimed at improving driving behaviour on the road.
For that reason, the Intelligent Transport Monitoring System (ITMS) was developed with objectives that include managing crime involving vehicles and motorbikes, improving traffic control, improving road safety and eliminating duplicate registrations.
It was thus proposed that an integrated system be innovated with digital number plates (Automatic number plate recognition), CCTV cameras (Speed and red-light enforcement), command centers, and database integration.
A fictitious company was handpicked even when it lacked technological and technical experience to undertake this project. Be that as it may, the government rolled out the self-regulating automated Express Penalty System in total disregard to basic checks. So far, the EPS has seen a number of motorists being penalized with harsh penalties.
The penalty scheme regulations include penalties for driving over the prescribed speed limits, offences related to registration plates in line with the ITMS, wearing and fastening of crash helmets, use of child restraints and children under five years to sit at the back and using appropriate child restraints plus use of cameras to issue the EPS tickets direct to the person(s) in whose name(s) the motor vehicle is registered.
It is said that the EPS auto will be able to detect violations such as over- speeding and running the red-lights, capturing and processing the vehicle or motorbike registration number plate plus the location, time and availing photo or video, generating an e-fine, which is logged into the ITMS database against the violating motorist and then verified by an in-charge police officer.
The registered vehicle owner is hence notified by text or email the type of offence, date committed, location, number plate, amount of penalty and time lines for payment. The automated Express Penalty System, which was suspended recently, is set to return in a couple of weeks. Offenders by omission or commission will face risks including vehicle impounding, accumulated unpaid fines, and denial of registration services, including court summons.
Sooner or later, the system will be connected to the driving permit office such that offenders will not be able to renew their driving permit until they have cleared up their arrears to zero balance.
The biggest victims will certainly be owners of commuter taxis whose vehicles are in the hands of reckless drivers. Besides, a ticket of Shs 600,000 for a driver who earns Shs 150,000 is enough to scare him into abandoning his work for fear of working for months without pay. With time, many people will resort to parking their vehicles for fear of being fined.
Surely if the ministry does not review its policy, they may need parking space to store impounded defaulting vehicles. When one is issued with a notification of the offence, the offender has to pay or clear within 28 days.
I personally take issue with a surcharge for late payment of 50 per cent, the decision to impound the motor vehicle, denial of license renewal and court charges. This means with time, the accumulated costs could force the owner to forego the vehicle for police to sell it.
The writer is a commentator on political, legal and social issues.
wadroger@yahoo.ca