Director of the Island Traffic Authority (ITA) Kenute Hare is encouraging Jamaicans to take photographs of retrofitted motor vehicles with blinding headlights and loud mufflers and submit them to the social media pages of the Road Safety Unit and Jamaica Constabulary Force(JCF) in order to help put a stop to the practice.

Speaking with the Jamaica Observer on Friday, Hare sought to remind the public that the practice is illegal and can throw off other motorists.

“Those blinding lights have the potential to create a destabilisation in the mind, body, soul, and spirit. We beseech people to desist from doing it. It is not safe. They do not enhance lighting at all. When we issued you the certificate of fitness, we never issued it to you with those blinding lights.

“We want your support in leveraging social media platforms. Give us the photographs and the licence plates of those vehicles with the blinding lights and those motorcycles with those loud mufflers. Send us the photographs, put them up on social media. Let us ensure we play our role in bringing order to the traffic environment and reduce any and all forms of destabilisation on the traffic environment. The ITA has received many complaints from motorists and, apart from the complaints, we have also been victims to some of these blinding lights that are on vehicles,” Hare said, pointing out that the ITA and the Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch of the JCF have a well-oiled machine and are working together to ensure that public order is brought to the traffic environment.

Vice-chairman of the National Road Safety Council Dr Lucien Jones on Friday bemoaned that the number of motorcyclists dying on the roads continues to rise, along with private motor car drivers.

As of April 14 there were 129 road deaths caused by motor vehicle crashes.

“Huge numbers! Indicative primarily of the number of drivers who are speeding and overtaking carelessly, and the continued non-usage of helmets and people running red lights.”