Saint Lucia’s Department of Infrastructure, Ports, and Transport (DIPT) has disclosed that as of June 2024, the Island had registered a vehicle stock of 95,518 and issued over 68,481 driver’s licenses.
The country has a population of roughly 180,000 people.
The disclosure regarding the Island’s vehicle stock and driver’s licenses came as the DIPT renewed a road safety appeal with the launch of Public Service Announcements (PSAs) in English and Saint Lucian Kweyol.
The DIPT noted that over the past few decades, Saint Lucia has recorded 383 road fatalities from almost as many vehicle crashes -307.
According to the Department, road congestion remains one steadily increasing factor, while public information and increased enforcement are effective countermeasures.
“Several road safety initiatives have been implemented as a precautionary measure, but the momentum has not been sustained,” DIPT observed.
It noted that the Holiday Season is a particularly critical time of year as vehicular congestion, reckless behaviour, and the influence of alcohol make driving particularly hazardous.
In this regard, the Department appealed to road users to exercise caution and urged motorists to be considerate.
The latest admonition occurred amidst an alarming surge in road incidents, prompting Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre to express his deep concern earlier this month.
Pierre urged citizens to take personal responsibility for their actions on the road, adding that reckless driving causes most accidents.
“Ninety percent of the accidents in this country are because people drive too fast. We need to exercise restraint on the road,” the Prime Minister stated.
Pierre also called for an end to drinking and driving and using mobile telephones while driving.
Pierre, no one will hear your appeals. Please stop being naive. In the developing countries there are rules and consequences. Apart from families crying and mourning after road fatalities, do you have any thin consequences in place for breaking the law. There are so many ways to control the drivers instead of your useless plea. You can hurt them in the pocket, licence suspension, vehicle impounded, points system, insurance hike for bad drivers and lots more. Do you have anything in place as a consequence for dangerous driving ?
Hmmm put limitations on Beachcomber, the used dealership opposite Beachcomber and the independent folks importing on their names for reselling with no car rental company, JQ leases so they are okay. How can one single man at a particular hotel, order 2 vehicles in 1 year for 3 years straight with no car rental?
“Ninety percent of the accidents in this country are because people drive too fast. We need to exercise restraint on the road,” the Prime Minister stated
But this same Pierre has charged ZERO percent of those driving too fast aka not obeying speed limits and causing harm and even death in some instances. That’s the definition of failure on the topic of road safety!!!
Not a single word on the age group who are involved in those crashes.
I think the majority of accidents in st lucia are cause by poor decision making and not so much speed, we need to get out of the mindset that accidents are caused mainly through speeding. Overtaking at a low rate of speed near a corner or cresting a hill is extremely dangerous, same as not looking before exiting an intersection. So yes I do believe more caution and better judgment needs to be exercised. The government also seems to be conveniently dodging the topic of road expansion seeing that our local roads are reaching their maximum viable capacity.
More ppl driving more vehicles on the same number and extent if road infrastructure will always equal more accidents. You want to reduce accidents? Start by enforcing the laws we already have. But the truth is, in the long run, we need to rethink the number of cars being imported. The used imported car market is completely unsustainable. 4000 cars are imported each year. Only about 1000 are new. All the rest are used cars. This makes no sense.
Mr.PM. You may mean well, but stop appealing and start putting strict measures. For example police stopping fast or bad drivers on suspicion and use breathalysers (i understand that there are breathalyser tests in the country.) If they fail then strict punishment from both fines to imprisonment and even banning of licenses. Stop acting like a spectator. You are the PM for God’s sake. Act like it!
A few ideas
How about points on licenses. After a certain number …. license gets taken away and individual has to retake the driving exam.
How about working traffic lights
How about cameras on these traffic lights and a long the highways
How about rebuilding and enhancing our ancient road network
How about no right turns on the Castries Gros Islet highway where persons have to go to strategically placed full sized round abouts to access the other side of the road.
How about police patrolling or stationed along side these highways during researched incident times.
How about broadcasting offenders names or vehicles plate numbers on TV after or before news with the offense committed
Just to start with
ENFORCE THE LAWS!
VEHEMENTLY!
EXPEDITIOUSLY!
RIGHT AWAY!
NO HOLDS BARRED!
Joe Public seem more on top of the situation than our PM and his ministers. Stop PLEADING and ACT!
Speed is not the cause for these accidents, majority of them happen at junctions and roundabouts. The real problem is people can’t drive, and a lot of them confuse driving slowly with driving safely.
Simple Solution here. it has been used in other Caribbean islands and has worked.
Vehicles can only be registered to people with private or enclosed/ secure parking.
However, 2 things need to be implemented to facilitate this.
1. A more efficient and accessible bus system.
2. It should dawn on the powers that be that housing should be more affordable and accessible, so that St. Lucians should be able to get a house loan as easy as a vehicle loan
@Ahms, this cannot work in a 3rd world Nation with the way communities are distributed. Perhaps the only way such implementation will make any sense is when an individual wishes to purchase more than one vehicle.
@Lucius Malfot, you made some very valuable points.
We don’t need to beg people to behave themselves on the roads and start any public relations drive. What we need is new tech like radars mounted on poles every mile or so on major highways and to send people tickets to their addrssea then attach a points system where a maximum of e.g. five points leads to a suspension if the licence. Each point would increase the ins premium
Some concerns here; does the vehicle count consist of vehicles licensed within the last year or vehicles registered over the years? The figures might be inflated just like the electoral lists. Many vehicles are taken off the road for various reasons: irreparable damage, scrap, major work not worth the vehicle and so on, without the Ministry’s knowledge. Some clarification would be essential.
Too many cars with too many people who do not know how to drive. It is infact quite easy to get a license in St Lucia (if you know the “right” people) and without knowing road rules, which are not enforced anyway. Nor even having many driving skills, including the ability to anticipate situations as they occur on the road. Improve public transport (and also their driver skills!) so people don’t need to clog up the roads with sooooo many private cars – it is a nightmare driving here now, and it tests peoples’ (lack of) patience. Road infrastructure is terrible too. Still all these comments will fall on deaf ears in political circles, unless of course they read them. Doubt it though – too busy approving the importation of yet more cars….
If you multiple that figure by the road tax fee, is there really any excuse for the roads we drive on?
You know you are not doing your job aka INCOMPETENT when every tom dick harry and jane has legitimate, feasible, achievable and implementable solutions to the problems that you have been battling to solve for so many years.