KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Transport and Mining, Robert Montague, says  passage of the new Road Traffic Act will open the door for the Island Traffic Authority (ITA) to fully assist in reducing road fatalities by regulating and enforcing, more aggressively, motor vehicle laws.

“To achieve this we have started to repair and upgrade the offices islandwide. Our staff has been trained and retrained and technology introduced to make the work flow better,” Montague said.

He was making his contribution to the 2018/19 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives yesterday.

The ITA is responsible for issuing drivers’ Certificate of Competence and certifying the road worthiness of most vehicles.

Montague also informed that motorists are now getting a machine printed fitness certificate.

He said the authority’s database is being upgraded and protected and new alliances are being formed with the police to help to remove illegal driver’s licences from the roads, adding that the driver’s licence application process will be automated soon.

 “The points system is now being computerized to ascertain when you exceed the points allowed and Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA), Tax Administration  Jamaica (TAJ), Transport Authority (TA), National Land Agency (NLA), banks, insurance companies and the police will be notified that your licence is suspended,” he added.

Montague also pointed out that for a fitness certificate to be printed, the vehicle must be present on the compound within a special geo fenced area, for the machine to sense the vehicle, or the machine will not issue the certificate.

“Let me warn motorists who try to bribe vehicle examiners to stop it. Do not attempt to bribe them. We have been hearing stories and let me publicly say it, we have started some undercover sting operations. These are being done at depots that people are making allegations about. Nobody, as of now, can say they were not warned,” he said.