TRANSPORT Minister Robert Pickersgill on Wednesday vowed to remove buses from the roads that continue to play music and video aboard, as well as bus operators who consume alcohol and also those who behave disorderly while carrying passengers.

“.You will be prosecuted and you run the risk of having your licence revoked for failure to comply with the laws and regulations governing your operations. Illegal activities and indiscipline will not be tolerated,” the transport minister said at a press briefing at his Kingston office.

Pickersgill told reporters that his ministry would be ensuring that bus operators, especially those in the Kingston Metropolitan Area (KMA), comply with the law when schools reopen for the Christmas term next week.

According to the transport ministry, approximately 123 security personnel – 60 from the Island Special Constabulary Force (ISCF) and 63 Transport Authority compliance officers – will be deployed across the KMA (Kingston, Portmore and Spanish Town) to monitor public transport vehicles.

This new push to ensure that bus operators obey the rules, comes on the heels of “Operation Restoration”, which was aimed at improving social order in the KMA’s public transportation system. The operation, which commenced in mid-June, saw more than 656 prosecutions for road breaches by bus operators.

Pickersgill, in the meantime, urged teachers and parents to encourage students not to take illegal taxis and buses and to choose carefully the public passenger vehicles that they use.

“They should avoid those that are heavily tinted, playing loud music and showing videos. and those with crews that are unkempt, loud and vulgar and with conductors riding on steps,” Pickersgill said.

At the same time, chairman of the Transport Authority said: “We will be removing radios and DVDs from offending vehicles.”

The Transport Authority will be enforcing the laws related to activities including:

. Causing passengers to be exposed to obscene language;

. Exposing passengers to obscene material;

. Impeding passengers who are school children, elderly and physically incapacitated;

. Impeding passengers from entering public passenger vehicles;

. Causing radios, DVDs and compact discs to be played;

. Drinking alcohol on public passenger vehicles;

. Disorderly conduct of driver or conductor on public passenger vehicle;

. Causing stage express carriage to be stationary longer than necessary;